There is so much confusion about this issue because therapeutic icing and heating — cryotherapy and thermotherapy — are rational, cheap, easy, safe self-treatment options for many common painful problems.
Ice is for fresh injuries, and heat is for stiff, aching muscles.
Ice is for injuries — calming down damaged superficial tissues that are inflamed, red, hot, swollen, pain or if it is bleeding/ post surgical pain. The inflammatory process is a healthy, normal, natural process; that also happens to be incredibly painful and more biologically stubborn than it needs to be. Icing is mostly just a mild, drugless way of dulling the pain of inflammation and taking swelling down a bit. Examples: a freshly pulled muscle.
Heat is for muscles, chronic pain, and stress — taking the edge off symptoms like muscle aching and stiffness, which have many unclear causes, but trigger points are probably one of the usual suspects. Chronic pain, especially back pain, often involves lots of tension, anxiety, hyper vigilance, and sensitization, and comfortable heat can soothe a jangled mind and nervous system. Stress and fear are major factors in many painful problems, of course.
Alternating between applications of ice and heat is called contrasting therapy. It’s extremely stimulating and is mostly used to facilitate injury recovery, with unknown efficacy.
What ice and heat are not for
Both ice and heat have the potential to do some minor, temporary harm when used poorly. Heat can make inflammation significantly worse. Ice can aggravate symptoms of tightness and stiffness; it can also just make any pain worse when it’s unwanted.
Both ice and heat are pointless or worse when unwanted: icing when you’re already shivering, or heating when you’re already sweating. The brain may interpret an excess of either one as a threat, but icing is more threatening and when brains think there’s a threat, they may also amp up the pain. Ice seems to be feel more threatening to most people.
Trigger points (painfully sensitive spots) can be surprisingly intense and easily mistaken for “iceable” injury and inflammation. But if you ice trigger points, they may burn and ache even more acutely. This mistake is made particularly often with low back pain and neck pain — the very conditions people often try to treat with ice.
Heat and inflammation are the other particularly bad combination.
How to use Ice
After an acute injury, such as an ankle sprain, or after activities that aggravate a chronic injury, such as shin splints.
Use an ice bag with cubed ice, ice pack or ice massage. When using an ice pack that does not have real ice cubes,use a thin towel between the ice pack and the skin to prevent frostbite.
Do not use ice longer than 20 minutes at a time. More time spent icing does not mean more relief. Be sure the area goes numb, then make sure the skin returns completely back to normal before reapplying.
How to apply heat
Before activities that aggravate chronic injuries, such as muscle strains. Heat can help loosen tissues and relax injured areas.
Apply heat using a heating pad or a hot wet towel.
No more than 20 minutes at a time. Never apply heat while sleeping. Be careful not to burn yourself.
To read more on First Aid, click on the link below.
Pain in the back can be due to issues arising from the skin, ligaments, muscles, bones or nerves in the back. Some people are more prone to backaches. Those who spend their whole day crouched over a computer screen, people who stay indoors the whole day, older people and even people who over train at the gym are more likely to get repeated backaches
Backpain
What are the causes of backpain?
There could me many reasons for backpain.
Backpain could be due to poor posture where the back is kept at an awkward angle and the muscles and ligaments get strained as a result.
A poor diet lacking in calcium or lack of vitamin D
Backpain could be as a result of injury due to lifting heavy weights or a fall
Sometimes, back pain can be due to medical reasons like a slipped disc- a condition where the nerves of the back get compressed and there tends to be pain and numbness in the back and legs.
Even a kidney infection or a urinary infection can cause backpain.
In women, a gynecological infection might be the reason
Other reasons could be an infection involving the back muscles or bones
Sometimes even tumours that can target the bones of the back can cause backpain
There are some simple remedies to try at home which might help a backpain
Cold compresses with an ice pack can help in numbing the area and relieve pain
A pain reliever like paracetamol, if you’re not allergic to it, might help if the pain is due to an injury
Resting the back for a couple of days can help the pain to settle
A gentle application of a pain relieving balm containing ingredients like camphor or peppermint essential oils might be beneficial.
When should I see the doctor?
It would be best to see your doctor if:
The pain is sharp and unbearable
The pain is going down one or both legs
There is numbness in the legs
There is weakness while walking
Any loss of bladder or bowel control is also a serious warning sign
Fever along with the pain might signal an infection
How is the cause of backpain diagnosed?
Your doctor will ask you in detail about the pain, how it started and some lifestyle questions as well.
This is generally followed by an examination wherein your doctor might check your nerves and also check your back movements.
Based on this, there might be some investigations prescribed. These might include a urine examination, kidney function tests, vitamin D levels and X rays or CT scans for the spine.
The doctor will probably prescribe a pain reliever, maybe in combination with a muscle relaxant, till the results come in. Do share any previous drug allergies and it’s a good idea to confirm if it’s safe to drive while on the relaxants, as some can be sedating.
What is the treatment of backpain?
Most acute back pain gets resolve with a few weeks of home treatment. Over-the-counter pain relievers and the use of heat or ice might be all you need. Bed rest isn’t recommended.
Continue your activities as much as you can tolerate. Try light activity, such as walking and activities of daily living. Stop activity that increases pain. If home treatments aren’t working after several weeks, your doctor might suggest stronger medications or other therapies.
Medications
Depending on the type of back pain you have, your doctor might recommend the following:
Over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others) or naproxen sodium (Aleve), might relieve acute back pain. Take these medications as directed by your doctor, because overuse can cause serious side effects.
If OTC pain relievers don’t relieve your pain, your doctor might suggest prescription NSAIDs.
Muscle relaxants. If mild to moderate back pain doesn’t improve with OTC pain relievers, your doctor may also prescribe a muscle relaxant. Muscle relaxants can make you dizzy and sleepy.
Topical pain relievers. These are creams, salves or ointments you rub into your skin at the site of your pain.
Narcotics. Certain drugs, such as codeine or hydrocodone, may be used for a short time with close supervision by your doctor.
Antidepressants. Low doses of certain types of antidepressants — particularly tricyclic antidepressants, such as amitriptyline — have been shown to relieve some types of chronic back pain, independent of their effect on depression.
Injections. If other measures don’t relieve your pain and if your pain radiates down your leg, your doctor may inject cortisone — an anti-inflammatory medication — or numbing medication into the space around your spinal cord (epidural space). A cortisone injection helps decrease inflammation around the nerve roots, but the pain relief usually lasts less than a few months.
Education
There’s no commonly accepted program to teach people with back pain how to manage the condition effectively. So education might involve a class, a talk with your doctor, written material or a video. Education emphasizes the importance of staying active, reducing stress and worry, and teaching ways to avoid future injury.
Physical therapy and exercise
Physical therapy is the cornerstone of back pain treatment. A physical therapist can apply a variety of treatments, such as heat, ultrasound, electrical stimulation and muscle-release techniques, to your back muscles and soft tissues to reduce pain.
As pain improves, the therapist can teach you exercises that can increase your flexibility, strengthen your back and abdominal muscles, and improve your posture. Regular use of these techniques can help prevent pain from returning.
Surgery
Few people need surgery for backpain. If you have unrelenting pain associated with radiating leg pain or progressive muscle weakness caused by nerve compression, you may benefit from surgery. Otherwise, surgery usually is reserved for pain related to structural problems, such as narrowing of the spine (spinal stenosis) or a herniated disk, that hasn’t responded to other therapy.
Can backache be prevented?
Some simple precautions on a daily basis can actually help in preventing back problems
While working at a computer, ensure that your feet are comfortably on the ground or a stool, your back is erect and arms are resting on the desk.
Take breaks every hour to loosen up the ligaments and walk where possible.
Always bend your knees to lift anything, before bending your back.
If your job involves being indoors, it might be a good idea to take vitamin D supplements after consulting with your doctor.
Some back strengthening yoga exercises, if done regularly, can keep back issues at bay.
We advocate medical advice before starting any treatment regime.
