i went to the e.r. for some chest pains the other day and they diagnosed me with costochondritis (thank God not my heart LOL). in case you don't know, costo is inflammation in the ribs where they attach to the breastbone or sternum. they gave me some meds to help with pain and they also told me i could use a heating pad to help as well. i am wondering how a heating pad could help inflammation?? isn't that heat already?
2007-12-16 03:08:14 · 2 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Pain & Pain Management
Count yourself lucky, I have just got over a bout of Costochondritis as I have Rheumatoid Arthritis. All I got was 'Nothing I can do for you!' However, both hot and cold can really help inflammation, some prefer hot, others prefer cold. Me, well one night I fell asleep with a infrared lamp on my groin, woke up to a burning odour! It was HOT. Seldom do I use cold anything, because I prefer heat over cold. Yes inflammation is hot already, so adding more heat literally speeds up the process, therefore stopping the inflammation, which is what, the bodies own immune system. Good Luck
2007-12-16 10:07:16 · answer #1 · answered by gillianprowe 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, typically you want to use cold on inflammation.
2007-12-16 11:19:30 · answer #2 · answered by mistify 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋