Ice or heat after an injury — which helps more, according to research
An injury during sports or in some other way can leave a part of the body swollen and make walking difficult. The question then arises — should one apply heat, or a cold pack of ice? A few points can be kept in mind to decide which will help more.
Minor pain is often ignored, but it can later become unbearable. So the first step is to judge how severe the pain is. If the injury is serious, an ice pack should be applied to the spot quickly. This is called cryotherapy or cold therapy. If no ice is at hand, a piece of cloth soaked in cold water can be placed on the injured area.
A well-known method here is the RICE sequence — Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. In other words, after a serious injury one should avoid walking, keep a cold pack pressed on the spot and work on improving the condition. But after two or three days this is no longer effective; light exercise helps then.
An injury during exercise or sports may feel like nothing at first, but later the muscle at the spot swells and the pain grows sharper. This is called delayed onset muscle soreness. In such cases both cold and heat can be applied, and benefit is found in some instances. However, scientific research has not found much effectiveness for such treatment, and specialist doctors have not reached a definite conclusion about its benefit.
In one study, the comparative fitness of 100 people was checked. To reduce muscle damage and pain among those injured during exercise, 50 people were given cold or heat treatment after 15 minutes, while the remaining 50 received no treatment. The researchers found that both cold and heat helped, but those given a cold pack immediately after the injury or 24 hours later benefited more. A paper on this was published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.
It should be remembered, however, that pain can also mean a hairline fracture in the bone. In that case, a doctor's advice must be taken instead of relying on home methods.
