The question of how to get relief with ice or heat is one of the most common in the office. And, spoiler alert, the answer as to which gives more relief is “it depends.” However, there are general guidelines that determine which should be used at any given time. But to understand why you first have to understand a little bit about the healing process.
The Healing Process
Anytime you have an injury your body immediately responds with all sorts of cells, particularly white blood cells. Their job is to clean up damaged tissue, prevent infection, and signal the body to provide more nutrients/oxygen for healing. As a result, damage tissue has five hallmark signs: heat, redness, edema, pain, and loss of function.
These five signs are collectively known as “inflammation,” and is the normal initial process of healing. Without it, healing would be prolonged and far less efficient. They key is to know how much inflammation do you need and how long should it last?
Typically, the inflammatory process should last about 3 days but can vary depending on the severity of injury and area affected. After this time, the body will begin more long-term healing via scar tissue and remodeling. But that brings us back to the original question: how do you get relief with ice and heat?
When to use Ice or Heat
In the inflammatory phase, ice will generally be the preferred choice. Not only will it ease pain more effectively but it also prevents excessive inflammation. This happens by vasoconstriction; the process of shrinking blood vessels to the area to reduce inflammatory markers. However, you can also use ice throughout treatment for pain tolerance and preventing new inflammation cycles.
If you use ice in the first 3 days, then heat would be best utilized from 3 days onward. Heat works especially well for muscular and joint complaints by causing vasodilation – widening of blood vessels to allow more nutrients, oxygen, and inflammatory cells to reach the affected area. Heat can also be used over time or as part of a warm up prior to activity.
Chiropractors, physical therapists, and athletic trainers have multiple ways of incorporating ice and heat into a treatment plan – hot/cold packs, ultrasound, hydrotherapy, and lasers are just a few examples. At home, ice or hot packs are great, simple way of managing pain and inflammation. For more details regarding all of these modalities, just ask Dr. Bowman on your next appointment.
