Home > Encyclopedia of Children's Health > Therapeutic Baths

Definition

Bathing the skin in a variety of preparations in order to remove crusts, scales, and old medications or to relieve inflammation and itching is called taking a therapeutic bath. The term therapeutic bath is also used to refer to various types of warm-water soaks used to speed wound healing, to apply gentle heat to sore muscles or joints, to relieve emotional stress, or to treat a variety of physical disorders ranging from sports injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic sinusitis to painful menstruation and vascular disorders. Therapeutic baths are...