Effectiveness of Herbal Steam Bath Therapy for Quality of Life and Sleep Quality in Post-Covid-19 Patients

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of herbal steam bath (HSB) therapy on the quality of life and sleep quality in post-COVID-19 patients. This randomized controlled trial involved 68 participants, who were divided into two groups: the intervention group received HSB combined with standard care, while the control group received only standard care. The HSB therapy was administered three times a week for four weeks. Outcome measures included the WHOQOL-BREF-THAI for quality of life, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for sleep quality, and the Thai Distress Thermometer for distress levels. The results indicated that HSB significantly improved the overall quality of life (P ≤ 0.05) and various components of sleep quality, such as overall sleep quality (P ≤0.05), sleep latency (P ≤ 0.05), sleep duration (P ≤ 0.05), and sleep disturbances (P ≤ 0.05). Additionally, HSB significantly reduced distress levels in the emotional domain (P ≤ 0.05). This study concludes that HSB might be beneficial in reducing distress, improving sleep quality, and consequently enhancing the quality of life among post-COVID-19 patients.