in therapeutic treatment,which is better,hot or cold packs?

Answer 1

It depends on what the treatment is for. Most of the time they tell you 20 min of ice, then 20 min of heat then 20 min rest.

Answer 2

As others have stated here,. it does depend upon what the condition is. ... If you are not sure,... cold is always the better choice to go with. You can do no harm with cold,... but you could do harm using heat in the wrong situation,.. such as if inflamation is present, and in that case, heat would promote the inflamation by increasing the circulation to the area, so heat would be a bad choice in that case, unless you are alternating the heat with cold (I explain this at the bottom here).

Cold constricts the flow of blood in the area. It causes the area to constrict and thus is an effective tool for 'flushing" out an area where there is swelling from injury. ....... Cold is also a good pain reliever,... for acute pain from injury.

Heat is appropriate for an area that has a dull ache due to weak circulation or fatigue. Heat will increase the circulation to the area. An example of a good case to use damp heat would be a dull low back ache due to stress or fatigue. ... You would never however appy heat if the back had been injured and the pain was a sharp, acute pain due to injury. ... This could make the condition worse by increasing the inflamation.

It is also true that in the case of an acute injury, the healing process can be accellerated by moving back and forth between cold and heat application. ... For example,.. 20 minutes of cold followed by 20 minutes of heat, followed by 20 min. cold, then 20 min. heat, and repeat like this as often as possible. This creates a "pumping" effect that will help to flush out the injured area and speed up the healing process. ... This can be great with the likes of a sprained ankle for example.

And remember,... if any sort of infection is present,.. do not use either heat or cold. This could cause the infection to spread.

Answer 3

depends on what you are treating. It also depends on the person. I recommend ice for 20 minutes minimum 3 times a day for 48 hours to an acute injury then heat during recovery
...however for sports like injuries, ice is needed after any activity using the joint/area of injury though out the whole healing process which could be weeks.

Answer 4

when i was playing football we always used heat for immediate injuries such as an injury that you know will bruise at first then at the first sign of swelling use cold. Like everyone else said, within the first 5 hours or so use heat to increase the blood flow and circulation of all fluids in order to get the platelets and white blood cells there for quicker repair then when it starts to swell switch to cold to lessen the pain and reduce circulation in order to minimize the circulation so that the antibodies, platelets and white blood cells can do their work.

Answer 5

It depends on what youre treating. They both have a GOOD purporse. However when telling with either leave them on for about 5 minutes at a time. I'm a nurse and I work in nursing home we dont use hot packs due to elderly can scald or burn easily.

Answer 6

Cold packs for inflamation and heat for soreness. Alternate between the two.

Answer 7

Whatever you do, do not move with the milk-cubes suggestion. I attempted this little scan as soon as pondering I'd arise with a first-rate solution to calm down my morning espresso. The complete factor used to be a crisis. Apparently, while milk freezes, it is add-ons separate. I ended up with rubbery yellow blobs that I could not take away from the ice tray with out strolling sizzling water over it. I suppose the ice percent suggestion could mainly be your excellent guess. Perhaps you'll be able to discover a pliable one who you'll be able to wrap across the thermos.

Answer 8

heat to treat sore achy muscles, cold to treat swollen tissue and muscles.