Ice baths and cold therapy have become popular in recent years – often touted for their benefits in aiding exercise recovery, boosting mood and supporting immunity.
Experts agree that cold therapy can indeed be an effective way to manage pain if you are living with arthritis. To benefit from it, there’s no need to go to the extreme of immersing yourself in an ice bath or spending a lot of time or money; even moderate forms of cold therapy at home can make a difference.
As temperatures dip, it’s a perfect time to explore why you should embrace the cold. Here’s why cold therapy can be an excellent solution for pain management.
The power of cold therapy
Cold therapy, also known as cryotherapy, is ideal for relieving painful, inflamed joints and can be beneficial following physical activity that causes discomfort. This is because the cold temperature causes blood vessels in the muscles to constrict, allowing your blood to move to vital organs, while also slowing the transmission of pain signals to the brain.
“Cold therapy can help ease inflammation, as it reduces the swelling,” said Lisa Robinson, Physiotherapist & Clinical Practice Lead at Arthritis Society Canada. "If you can tolerate it, ice packs are an easy and inexpensive way for patients to relieve their symptoms at home.”
Research has highlighted the advantages of cold therapy for pain relief in people living with arthritis. A 2016 study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology investigated the effects of whole-body cold mist shower therapy on patients with chronic inflammatory arthritis. The researchers used Amandan, a Finnish innovation equipped with nozzles to disperse cold water into mist particles, on its subjects. They suggested that “cold water mist on the skin can be understood to be more easily tolerated compared to ice cold water.”
A separate study also found that short-term whole-body cryotherapy significantly reduced pain for people living with arthritis, finding the treatment to be well-tolerated.
Types of cold therapy for arthritis
“Cold temporarily numbs the affected area, aiding with pain relief,” said Lisa. She encourages patients to experiment with different techniques to see what works best for them and suits their lifestyles (good news: there are several DIY methods)!
Before trying any of these techniques, ensure you have full sensation in the area where you plan to apply cold therapy. Nerve damage causing tingling or numbness may prevent a person from accurately sensing the temperature, which can result in an injury such as frostbite. For those with intact sensation, here are several ways to use cold therapy for arthritis at home:
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Ice pack - Place an ice pack or a bag of frozen food on the affected area, wrapping a towel around the pack to protect the skin. Apply it for 10-15 minutes at a time, stopping the treatment if your skin feels numb.
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Cold soak - Soak your hands in cold water for 3 to 4 minutes. You can also try alternating between heat and cold therapy. A contrast bath involves dipping your hands into a tub of warm water followed by a tub of cold water, each for 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Repeat this process 2-3 times, taking care to avoid extreme temperatures.
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Ice massage - To target one or two small joints such as fingers, take an ice cube in a small plastic bag or wrapped in a thin, moist cloth and rub it around the joint(s) for approximately 5 minutes.
On the flipside, what about heat? It is important to avoid applying heat to a swollen joint. “When you apply heat to something, it dilates the blood vessels, which allows more fluid in. That can often make swelling worse,” Dr. Lisa Carlesso noted in an Arthritis Talks webinar earlier this year. “Ice is more typically recommended for swelling, and compression is also very effective.”
Cold therapy might not be suitable for everyone. If you suffer from Raynaud’s phenomenon, a condition resulting from poor circulation in the extremities, you should avoid or take caution when partaking in cold therapy. Additionally, if you have visible skin damage, consult with a health professional prior to incorporating heat or cold in your arthritis self-care routine.