Purpose: 

Inflammatory pathways are involved in the pathogenesis of pneumonia. Frequent sauna sessions may reduce the risk of respiratory tract infections including pneumonia independent of inflammation. We aimed to evaluate the independent and joint associations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and frequency of sauna bathing (FSB) with risk of pneumonia in a prospective cohort study.

Methods: 

Serum hsCRP as an inflammatory marker was measured using an immunometric assay and FSB was assessed by self-reported sauna bathing habits at baseline in 2264 men aged 42-61 yr. Serum hsCRP was categorized as normal and high (≤3 and >3 mg/L, respectively) and FSB as low and high (defined as ≤1 and 2-7 sessions/wk, respectively). Multivariable-adjusted HRs (CIs) were calculated for incident pneumonia.

Results: 

A total of 528 cases of pneumonia occurred during a median follow-up of 26.6 yr. Comparing high versus normal hsCRP, the multivariable-adjusted risk for pneumonia was HR = 1.30 (95% CI, 1.04-1.62). The corresponding risk was HR = 0.79 (95% CI, 0.66-0.95) comparing high versus low FSB. Compared with men with normal hsCRP and low FSB, high hsCRP and low FSB was associated with an increased risk of pneumonia in multivariable analysis (HR = 1.67: 95% CI, 1.21-2.29), with no evidence of an association for high hsCRP and high FSB and pneumonia (HR = 0.94: 95% CI, 0.69-1.29).

Conclusions: 

In a general middle-aged to older male Caucasian population, frequent sauna baths attenuated the increased risk of pneumonia due to inflammation.

中文翻译：

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频繁桑拿浴可降低因炎症引起的肺炎风险：一项前瞻性队列研究

目的： 

炎症通路参与肺炎的发病机制。频繁的桑拿浴可以降低呼吸道感染的风险，包括独立于炎症的肺炎。我们的目的是在一项前瞻性队列研究中评估高敏 C 反应蛋白 (hsCRP) 和桑拿浴频率(FSB) 与肺炎风险的独立和联合关联。

方法： 

使用免疫测定法测量血清 hsCRP 作为炎症标志物，并通过2264 名 42-61 岁男性在基线时自我报告的桑拿浴习惯评估 FSB。血清 hsCRP 分为正常和高（分别≤3 和 >3 mg/L）和 FSB 低和高（分别定义为 ≤1 和 2-7 次/周）。计算了肺炎事件的多变量调整 HR (CI)。

结果： 

在 26.6 年的中位随访期间，共有 528 例肺炎发生。将高 hsCRP 与正常 hsCRP 进行比较，肺炎的多变量调整风险为 HR = 1.30 (95% CI, 1.04-1.62)。相应的风险是 HR = 0.79 (95% CI, 0.66-0.95)，比较高 FSB 和低 FSB。与具有正常 hsCRP 和低 FSB 的男性相比，在多变量分析中，高 hsCRP 和低 FSB 与肺炎风险增加相关（HR = 1.67：95% CI，1.21-2.29），没有证据表明高 hsCRP 和低 FSB 相关高 FSB 和肺炎（HR = 0.94：95% CI，0.69-1.29）。

结论： 

在一般的中年至老年男性高加索人群中，频繁的桑拿浴降低了因炎症而增加的肺炎风险。