The term ‘antrotherapy’ is used to mean all therapeutic uses of the water vapour released inside natural geological caves or in artificial man-made environments.

The caves used are grouped into hot or cold caves depending on the internal temperature and only the former have a therapeutic use. These can be split into humid-hot caves (known as thermal caves) and dry-hot caves called steam caves. Inside the latter, the steam is released through cracks found in the cave floor or walls.

Therapy carried out inside natural thermal and steam caves depends on the presence of hot thermal water or steam produced by active volcanic phenomena. A particular micro-climate can be found inside the thermal and steam caves due to a combination of factors (water temperature and chemical composition, humidity level, composition of any thermal gases, rock composition and level of ionisation in air ) which patients are exposed to.

Obviously thermal treatments concern the whole body and therefore we can say that they require a general reaction from the patient to the environmental conditions he/she is exposed to, and in particular ‘thermal pressure’.

Antrotherapy is a suitable treatment for rheumatic and articular problems and is also useful for treating respiratory disorders.