How to Treat Pain with Hot and Cold Therapy Packs?
Do you know? Severe joint pains and injury pains can be treated with hot and cold therapies. Usually, hot therapy is used since heat boosts blood and nutrients flow in your particular body area. On the other hand, cold therapy is used because coldness slows the blood flow and reduces swelling and pain. In most hot and cold therapy packs, heat is used to treat acute injuries and problems, while cold is used for muscle pain and stiffness. Let's learn about the hot and cold therapy ice packs in detail:
Hot Therapy
Talking about the working of heat therapy, by applying the heat on the affected area it improves the blood circulation and blood flow as it enhances the body temperature. In addition to this, it increases muscle flexibility. As a result, heat therapy helps to relax the muscles and heal the damaged tissues.
Types of Hot Therapy
Generally, hot therapy is categorized into two types of heat therapy: dry heat and moist heat. The first one means the dry heat therapy is easy to apply, and it includes sources like heating pads, dry heating packs, etc. The second one, which is moist heat, is considered more effective than the first one. It includes sources like steamed towels, moist heating packs, hot baths, etc.
When is heat therapy useful?
Heat therapy is useful in the following conditions like
Osteoarthritis
Strains and Sprains
Muscles Stiffness
Pains and Spasms
Joint Pains
Neck and Back injuries
While applying heat therapy on your body, you need to keep it for more than 30 minutes. The minor stiffness is cured within 15 to 20 minutes. However, for moderate or severe pains, it will take from 30 minutes to two hours.
Cold Therapy
Cold therapy is also known with the name of cryotherapy. While considering the cold therapy's working, it works by reducing the blood flow in the affected body part, which helps reduce the swelling or pain of your body.
Types of Cold Therapy
The cold therapy involves several ways to apply to the affected body part; some of the cold therapy types are:
Custom ice packs
Coolant sprays
Ice massage
Ice baths
When is cold therapy useful?
Cold therapy can be proved as useful in the following situations like
Osteoarthritis
Minor injury
Gout
Strains
Never apply the ice therapy directly on the injury or the affected body, so wrap the ice in the towel or similar stuff for the better treatment. You can use cold therapy several times a day for a shorter time. For the cold therapy, 10 to 15 minutes are enough, but you can enhance the cold therapy time to cure the nerve and skin damage.
Final Thoughts
Both hot and cold therapy packs is effective for the minor to severe muscle pains. For the better results of the hot and cold therapy, you can use the hot and cold therapy packs because you can avoid the harms that can be caused due to the overuse or over the timing of the cold and hot therapy.