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Heated, humidified air for the common cold
1Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, Sector 12, Chandigarh, India, 160012. medinst@pgi.chd.nic.in
The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
|May 5, 2000
Summary
Warm vapour inhalation may relieve common cold symptoms, but evidence on viral shedding and nasal resistance is mixed. Further research is recommended to confirm the benefits of this common cold treatment.
Area of Science:
- Respiratory Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
- Evidence-Based Medicine
Background:
- The common cold is a widespread upper respiratory tract infection.
- Heated water vapour inhalation, using devices like the rhinotherm, is a traditional remedy for cold symptoms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of heated water vapour inhalation for common cold treatment.
- To compare effects on symptoms, viral shedding, and nasal resistance.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of six randomized trials involving 319 participants.
- Searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Current Contents, and other sources for relevant studies.
- Included trials using standardized heated water vapour delivery in common cold patients or experimentally infected volunteers.
Main Results:
- Warm vapour inhalation showed a significant benefit in relieving common cold symptoms (OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.16-0.60).
- Results for symptom score indices were equivocal; no studies showed worsening symptoms.
- No evidence of decreased viral shedding was found; nasal resistance effects were inconsistent across studies. Minor thermal side effects were reported.
Conclusions:
- Three trials indicated symptom relief from heated water vapour inhalation for the common cold.
- Objective improvements in outcome measures were not consistently demonstrated across all studies.
- A multi-center, double-blind, randomized controlled trial with uniform outcome measures is recommended.