The age-old question: Heat or ice? While ice is ideal for certain injuries, heat also can provide symptom relief for a variety types of health conditions. In this article, I will focus on thermotherapy, or superficial heat modalities, which affect underlying tissue to a depth of 1-2 centimeters. These can include heat/hot packs, fluidotherapy, and paraffin baths.

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We are proud to announce that for the fourth year in a row, Proactive Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine will be participating in collecting toys for Energy 103.7’s AJ’s Kids Crane benefiting Rady’s Children’s Hospital.  Because of the generosity of our patients and staff, last year Proactive Physical Therapy donated over five storage bins full of toys, making our decision to participate again easy.

If you would like to donate a toy, please be sure to stop by any one of our clinics.  Because the toys will be going to a sterile environment, unfortunately we cannot accept any stuffed animals or used toys.”

Which is better, heat or ice? Patients ask me that all the time. And my answer is: it depends. Both are good, but good for different things. In this article, I will focus on cryotherapy or “cold”/ice therapy. This can include ice packs, whirlpools, cooling sprays, or the ever popular frozen peas.

First of all, what does ice do to your body? In general, The metabolic activity of the tissue decreases, and nerve conduction becomes slower. It can reduce muscle spasms and guarding (when your muscles are tense from having pain). Basically, everything becomes slower with ice. How can that help someone with an injury?

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