Heat Or Ice For Back Pain Relief
Sometimes a single treatment will even include both.
Heat or ice for back pain relief. Behr has seen patients who have suffered from burns due to excessive use of either heat or cold. Cold slows the blood flow to an injury reducing pain and swelling. Apply cold put an ice pack on your back for 10 to 20 minutes to reduce nerve activity pain and swelling. Use heat for muscle pain or stiffness.
And be sure to wrap the ice pack in a towel to protect your skin. It is important to remove the heating pad or ice for 15 to 20 minutes after each treatment period. When it comes to acute pain inflammation and swelling ice tends to win out says dr. See ice packs for back pain relief once the inflammation has subsided use heat therapy.
In his 21 years of experience dr. The local warmth stimulates blood circulation in your lower back which in turn brings healing nutrients to the injured tissues. When either heat or cold will do soothe aches and pains caused by conditions like osteoarthritis rheumatoid arthritis back pain fibromyalgia and neck pain with either heat or cold. As a general rule of thumb use ice for acute injuries or pain along with inflammation and swelling.
Heat on the other hand increases.