Other climatotherapy sites
Sites where climatotherapy is available exist around the world. In addition to the Dead Sea, there are several other locations where the environment and natural elements are said to be especially therapeutic for psoriasis and/or psoriatic arthritis. The most well-established are described here. There are others, although limited information is available about them, including the Black Sea and the Copahue Thermal Basin in Argentina.
Blue Lagoon
The Blue Lagoon Outpatient Clinic, located in Grindavik, Iceland, 40 minutes from the capital city of Reykjavik, offers facilities to house and treat psoriasis patients. Treatment at the clinic consists of ultraviolet light treatments, usage of skin care products and bathing in seawater that is heated by a geothermal power plant. The water has a unique mineral content and contains salts, silica and blue green algae.
For more information about the Blue Lagoon, contact the Blue Lagoon Outpatient Clinic at P.O. Box 22, 240 Grindavik, Iceland, 354.420.8800, or visit www.bluelagoon.com.
Canary Islands
A psoriasis treatment center operates on the Canary Islands. However, it is not possible for Americans to participate in this particular program because it is funded by the Norwegian government. Americans can travel to the Canary Islands off the coast of Spain through private travel companies to take advantage of the sun and water.
The Norwegian Psoriasis Association, together with other Scandinavian associations, is working on plans for its own psoriasis treatment center on the Canary Islands. This center would be accessible to the international public.
France
The Avene Spa Center, located in the south of France, provides spa therapy with water from a thermal spring. Baths are the main feature of the treatment, but it also incorporates drinking the water, and environmental (climate) and psychological factors. A course of therapy is usually three weeks. For more information about this location, contact a travel agent, or visit www.avenehydrotherapycenter.com.
The La Roche Posay spa is located near Poitiers about 185 miles from Paris. The thermal spring water contains a unique combination of mineral salts. Treatment includes baths, showers, drinking the water, general detoxification and natural sunlight. Psychotherapeutic support is also provided. Nearly 10,000 people stay at this thermal spa each year. The spa also welcomes children. For more information about Centre Thermal Del La Roche Posay, contact a travel agent or visit www.larocheposay-shrp.com.
Manitou Beach
People looking to treat a myriad of diseases have used Manitou Beach, on Little Lake Manitou in Watrous, Saskatchewan, Canada, since the beginning of the 20th century. Little Lake Manitou is 14 miles long and approximately one mile wide. The shallow lake is fed by underground springs and contains higher than normal mineral concentrations. Little Lake Manitou has many of the same qualities as the Dead Sea.
Local small motels, hotels and inns offer accommodations. To learn more about Manitou Beach, visit watrousmanitou.com or call 866.756.6665.
Mavena Derma Center
The Mavena Derma Center in Des Plaines, Ill., is the only medical clinic in the United States offering balneo-phototherapy, which combines a brine soak with UVB. Mavena's balneo-phototherapy combines a magnesium-rich Dead Sea salt whirlpool soak followed by narrow-band UVB phototherapy. Most patients require
15 to 25 treatments to achieve 80 percent to 87 percent clearance.
Mavena also offers a total body product line of Dead Sea salt moisturizing products. Mavena mines and imports its salt directly from the Dead Sea.
The Mavena Des Plaines Center is located approximately 18 miles northwest of downtown
Chicago. Other Mavena centers exist in Switzerland and Germany. For more information, call the
Mavena Derma Center at 866.4.MAVENA or visit www.mavena.com.
Red Sea
The Red Sea in Egypt is another geographical site where the water contains unique properties said to help certain diseases. The climate at the Red Sea is similar to that of the Dead Sea, with sunshine at least 350 days a year.
Sites that offer climatotherapy in Egypt include Helwan, Hurghada, the Fayoum Oases, Aswan, Sinai and Safaga.
A climatotherapy site located in Safaga is open to people who have psoriasis. At the National Research Center Clinic, psoriasis patients bathe in the highly salty waters of the area and expose themselves to sunlight twice a day.
Several travel agencies specialize in treatment packages to Safaga at the Red Sea. Visit www.sporttouristik.de/medicustravel/english.htm to learn more about the travel packages available or contact a travel agent for assistance.
Soap Lake
Soap Lake is located in the high desert terrain of central Washington state. The treatment regimen consists of a do-it-yourself schedule of soaking in the lake water (which includes a unique combination of 25 minerals), applying mudpacks and sunbathing in the area's dry, desert climate during June, July and August. No formal treatment facilities exist.
Small motels and hotels offer accommodations, and several of them pipe lake water into the rooms for therapeutic purposes. Most hotel staff and local residents are knowledgeable about the lake water and how to make use of it. For more information about Soap Lake accommodations or available activities, contact the Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 433, Soap Lake, WA 98851, call 509.246.1821, or visit www.soaplakecoc.org.
Warm Mineral Springs
The Warm Mineral Springs are located halfway between Sarasota and Ft. Myers on the West coast of
Florida. The Springs is a water-filled, hourglass-shaped sinkhole that is about 80 yards in diameter and 230 feet deep. Some individuals with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis have found that bathing in the Springs has helped improve their condition.
For more information, contact Warm Mineral Springs at 941.426.1692 or visit www.warmmineralsprings.com.
Other options
Many individuals take advantage of informal climatotherapy by going to U.S. beaches and other tropical sites for sunbathing and saltwater swimming. There are many natural and man-made spas or springs across the country. Some people with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis find bathing in these water sources beneficial. For more information about water-based facilities in your area, contact your state's chamber of commerce or tourism office.
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Updated May 2007 |
