Hyperthermia can be used in the treatment of upper and lower respiratory tract infections, bladder problems, and urinary tract infections such as cystitis. For these problems, hot baths are the most common method used to induce hyperthermia.

  Douglas Lewis, N.D., Chair of Physical Medicine at the Bastyr College Natural Health Clinic in Seattle, Washington, states that a hot immersion bath, if done without raising body temperature and heart rate too quickly or too high, can be used as an additional treatment for a various number of diseases - from upper respiratory infections and sexually transmitted diseases to cancer and AIDS. Hyperthermia in the form of hot baths has also proved useful in the treatment of herpes simplex and herpes zoster (shingles). At first the treatment intencifies the situation, but conditions improve after a short time. It is also useful in treating the common cold and flu, as well as chronic fatigue syndrome. Bruce Milliman, N.D., of Seattle, Washington, reports a 70 percent success rate using hyperthermia to treat chronic fatigue syndrome.

  Dr. Lewis has also had good results treating chronic fatigue syndrome with hyperthermia. For certain cases, Dr. Lewis prescribes hyperthermia as a form of self-care. For example, he suggested one patient take hot tub treatments at home three to four times weekly. Dr. Lewis reports, that during the following year her condition improved wonderfully. While not fully recovered, her energy level is substantially higher, and she attributes this to her hot tub routine.

  Dr. Lewis also treats with hyperthermia such conditions as acute viral infection. He was visited by a patient suffering from a combination of pneumonia and bronchitis. His infection had initially been treated with natural remedies, and then antibiotics, both of which produced only minor results. Dr. Lewis prescribed two treatments of hyperthermia forty-eight hours apart, with an additional treatment given at home one week later. The patient began to improve with the first treatment and was significantly better by the time of the final treatment. Dr. Lewis says, that in treating acute conditions sometimes the patient will have more difficulty tolerating higher temperatures than those who are suffering from chronic conditions. As the fever response is stimulated, however, usually a higher tolerance follows.

  Hot baths are the simplest method of inducing a fever at home and can be used to treat upper respiratory tract infections (colds, flu) and even lower respiratory tract conditions, such as bronchitis and pneumonia. To treat viral infections, hot baths can be combined with hot drinks and blanket-wrapping to stimulate the immune system. After the bath, wrap yourself in dry blankets. You may also want to put a hot water bottle over your abdomen. Allow yourself to perspire heavily for as long as you can tolerate. This may take several hours. Follow with a cool shower.

  It is also possible to produce a mild fever at home by simply wrapping up in a dry blanket pack. Again, you can allow yourself to perspire heavily for several hours and follow with a cool shower.

  Also, a wet sheet pack may be used to produce a therapeutic fever. Wrap yourself in a very cold wet sheet and several blankets. Like the dry pack, you will need several hours to produce a fever. The cold sheet produces reactions in the body that encourage the production of heat. It is often useful to precede the wet sheet with some kind of heating such as exercise or a hot bath or shower.

  Local hyperthermia can also be useful from time to time. One study shows that the inhalation of steam is useful in the treatment of head colds. Hot soaks or hot packs may also be used to treat local conditions. An infection in a hand or foot might benefit from immersion in hot water. If immersion would be uncomfortable, as in the case of an infected wound, hot packs may be applied to the area instead.

  At the Natural Health Clinic of Bastyr College, hyperthermia is generally used in the treatment of HIV and other chronic and acute viral infections. In 1988 and 1989, the Natural Health Clinic conducted a "Healing Aids Research Project" (HARP). Hyperthermia treatment was included in the treatment protocol developed for the study because of its immune-stimulating, detoxifying, and disinfecting properties.

  According to Leanna Standish, N.D., Ph.D., Director of HARP, participants reported that hyperthermia was the facet of their treatment that had the greatest influence. Their  night sweats and the frequency of secondary infection had decreased. Also, many participants reported having a greater sense of well-being after hyperthermia treatments.

  Laboratory research has proven that HIV is temperature sensitive and suffers greater inactivation at progressively higher temperatures above 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. For example, after thirty minutes heating in a water bath at 107.6 degrees Fahrenheit, 40 percent inactivation of HIV has been reported, and at 132.8 degrees Fahrenheit, 100 percent inactivation. Dr. Lewis says, that though hyperthermia is not the answer for all HIV patients, but it is an appropriate addition treatment for all but a few very sick patients.

  There are a lot of references in the current medical literature to the use of hyperthermia in conventional medical settings as an addition cancer treatment. Studies have shown that hyperthermia treatment alters cell membranes in such a way as to protect healthy cells and make tumor cells more susceptible to chemotherapy and radiation. This makes hyperthermia a useful addition in cancer therapy, as its application enables the use of lower doses of chemotherapy and radiation.

  Other studies have shown that hyperthermia treatments help stimulate the immune system. White cell counts appear to drop immediately following treatment, but rise within a few hours. The number of white cells increase, as well as their ability to destroy target cells. A recent study has shown an increase in the production of interleukin-1 (a compound produced by the body in response to infection, inflammation, or other immunologic challenges) with whole-body hyperthermia. These studies indicate that increased body temperature plays a positive role in the curing process of the body. A. C. Guyton, M.D., an authority in the field of medical physiology, believes that the metabolic rate would be increased 100 percent for every 10 degrees centigrade rise in temperature. This increased metabolic rate accounts for some of the increased immune activity.

  Zane Gard, M.D., and Erma Brown, B.S.N., P.H.N., incorporate hyperthermia as part of their detoxification program known as the BioToxic Reduction (BTR) Program.  Dr. Gard reports, the human body stores a mix of toxins in the fat found in cells and cell walls, as well as in actual fat cells. These toxins include pesticides, herbicides, and solvents, as well as prescription and recreational drugs. Hyperthermia is an excellent way to stimulate the release of toxins from the cells and allow their elimination, first through the skin, and later through the bowels and kidneys, according to Dr. Gard,  

  Dr. Gard developed a comprehensive  program  which requires careful medical supervision. The treatment consists of a daily schedule of exercise and sauna sessions, supplementation of vitamins, minerals, niacin, trace elements, oil, and amino acids, pre- and post-program blood chemistry analysis, and personality and perception testing. The daily treatments must last for at least two weeks to be effective.

  Patients are monitored closely after exiting the sauna. Large amounts of toxins are sometimes released into the blood by the hyperthermia treatment and may cause a medical emergency (difficulty breathing, heart problems, and, in the case of recreational drug toxins, flashbacks and hallucinations).

  Dr. Lewis describes a patient who was being treated at the Natural Health Clinic using hyperthermia produced with a steam cabinet. The patient had been an oral and intravenous drug abuser for a long time. After a short period of heating, the old accumulation of drug residues was released and he got "high" from the drugs rushing through the bloodstream. Several times during his first few treatments he became incoherent and mumbled away about nothing in particular. Gradually, over several sessions this reaction redused to almost nothing.