Modern Vespa

I know a lot of us deal with pain on a daily basis. It turns out applying ice to an injury slows the healing process and is counterproductive. This information comes from the man who coined the term R.I.C.E. or Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

There has been a shift in thinking about cryotherapy and I wanted you all to know about it.

Here is a link with more details:
http://stoneathleticmedicine.com/2014/04/rice-the-end-of-an-ice-age/

Make sense to this layperson. My soccer coach in high school would only let us ice an injury immediately after it occurred. After that he would tell us to use heat only with stretching. He claimed that the heat made injuries heal faster. I don't know if this is true but maybe he was ahead of his time.

Well, that's interesting. So much for what's been taught as gospel for decades. "RICE" was new when I was in school.

As I was reading the title I was thinking, "same goes for NSAIDs (antiinflamatory meds) and steroids." Then I saw the link to that post.

I like the mention of dogma. It seems to be what we're always up against when looking at new evidence. In my practice, I have the ice vs. heat conversation sometimes daily. People will tell me that some other professional told them, for example, "NEVER use ice after 48 hours!" Really? Mostly I don't think ice is all that helpful, but if using ice or heat for symptom management, do what works, and don't over-do. Same with meds. People treat Ibuprofen like a vitamin and get confused why their stomach bled. Hmm.

Clearly the though process is turning away from inflammation as a demon to be slain towards how to best facilitate the process of healing, which inflammation is a crucial part.... I think that is working much better and leaving less damage in it's wake.

I've never thought to use ice, I've sometimes used heat treatment but I usually just rest it.

Thank you for posting it! An interesting read (:

I've always preferred applying heat on my injuries (of which I had many after years of racing BMX). Cold just helps because I think it numbs the pain and helps with swelling, but I always felt more limber and healed using heat.

Seems like it works for you. Can be a challenge to figure out what you need most, i.e. pain relief or easier movement. As you know, they're not the same. I've had lots of patients over the years tell me they've started with heat (mild-moderate injuries), they're happy and no worse off, despite RICE being the standard. It's always been hard to argue with what works. Sometimes it takes "science" a while to catch up.

Old Soviet therapy for sports recovery involved repetitive immersions in cold and hot water. Seemed to work well for them along with whatever else they were using.

I sort of do this after cycling with a cold swim and then a hot tub soak. My performance enhancing drug of choice is caffine.