[Hydrotherapy and thermotherapy in the treatment of functional disorders]

The modern interpretation of functional disorders classifies them as somatoform autonomic functional disorders that are associated with the vegetative nervous system. This places them within the responsibility of psychosomatic, psychotherapeutic medicine or psychiatry. In consequence, other forms of treatment with an impact on the vegetative system are being underestimated, such as hydrotherapy and thermotherapy, the efficacy of which depends on the fact that thermoregulation predominates over the regulation of numerous other organ systems. In the present article, the effectiveness of this therapeutic approach is discussed.