Kenneth Glad
An unconventional care programme is under pressure after losing public financing. Patients continue attending, although its medical value remains uncertain.
A respiratory clinic located 250 metres below Yerevan is struggling to remain open seven years after Armenia stopped paying for treatment there.
The Guardian reports that the centre operates inside the active Avan salt mine and offers speleotherapy, a complementary practice based on prolonged exposure to a naturally stable underground climate.
Patients spend about six hours below ground each day during a three-week course. Supporters say the salt-rich air, steady temperature and low levels of pollution and allergens may ease asthma, bronchitis, sinus problems and allergies.
State funding was withdrawn
Anzava Hospital opened in 1987 after researchers examined reports that salt mine workers appeared to experience unusually low levels of respiratory illness. Similar treatment centres were later established in parts of Eastern Europe and the countries of the former Soviet Union.
According to The Guardian, Armenia once covered the program through its healthcare system, allowing the clinic to receive thousands of visitors annually. Doctor Anush Voskanyan said it previously admitted as many as 60 patients at once.
The government withdrew support in 2019, saying there was not enough scientific evidence to justify public spending on the treatment. Patients must now pay about €23 for each session.
Only about five people were attending when The Guardian visited.
“We’re on the brink of closing down,” Voskanyan said. “We’re still operating, but just barely, and could close any day.”
Medical questions remain unresolved
The newspaper describes patients resting, walking and completing breathing exercises in chambers kept at approximately 19°C.
Voskanyan said some children had stopped experiencing asthma attacks after completing one course, although the report cited no clinical evidence supporting that claim.
Asthma patient Mikayel Torosian said that other treatments had not helped him as much. He said the underground program had changed his view of speleotherapy.
Large-scale research into the practice remains limited. Many respiratory specialists regard it as a complementary therapy that may relieve symptoms but should not replace conventional medical care.
The clinic now depends largely on patients willing to finance their own treatment, leaving its survival tied to a disputed therapy that no longer qualifies for Armenian state support.
Source: The Guardian, Anzava Hospital
