What should I do when I get a sports injury? Apply ice? Heat? Ice and then heat? I'm totally confused.

ANSWER:

Ice is more appropriate than heat for treating most sports injuries.

In general, heat should only be applied for chronic issues such as muscle or joint stiffness and soreness. Heat can also help relax muscles or decrease muscle spasms. In these cases, however, heat helps promote blood flow and prepare tissue before physical activity; it should never be applied after exercise, since it would simply direct blood flow to the injured area and increase inflammation.

Any time you suffer an acute injury with swelling or inflammation, cryotherapy -- aka the application of ice -- is the way to go. Decreasing the temperature of injured tissue helps to diminish pain, slow down muscle metabolism and minimize muscle spasms. That means less inflammation and better tissue recovery. With that said, the benefits of ice differ depending on the stage of the injury. Applying it immediately after trauma minimizes the degree of tissue damage. Once some time has passed, its primary purpose is to relieve pain and make activity more tolerable.

Large, flexible gel packs that contour to the injured area are better than rigid ice packs. For the average injury, applying ice 10 to 20 minutes two to four times a day is adequate. More severe injuries and postoperative patients can require up to 30 to 45 minutes of cryotherapy every two hours. -- As told to Caroline Kinneberg

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