Contrast bath treatment , also known as hot/cold immersion therapy , is a form of treatment in which limbs or whole body are immersed in hot water (but not boiling) followed by direct immersion limbs or in ice water. This procedure is repeated several times, alternating hot and cold. However, there seems to be no significant medical benefit from doing this.
Video Contrast bath therapy
Theory
The theory behind contrast bath treatments is that hot water causes vasodilation of blood flow in the limb or body followed by cold water that causes vasoconstriction, improves local blood circulation. In addition, the lymph vessels contract when exposed to cold, and relax in response to heat. The lymph system, unlike the circulatory system, does not have a central pump. By alternating heat and cold, it is believed that the lymph vessels dilate and contract in essentially "pumping" and move the stagnant fluid out of the wound area, and this positively affects the inflammatory process, which is the body's primary mechanism for healing damaged tissue. One study showed that intramuscular temperature fluctuations were lower than those caused by hot baths alone.
Other studies have shown that thermal stress seems to positively affect the immune system.
A pair of studies published in 1994 and 1997 by William Myer and his colleagues at Brigham Young University investigated this claim using a needle-mounted thermometer placed just below the skin and 1 cm into the calf muscle. In both studies, subjects underwent a 20 minute contrast routine, beginning with heat and alternating coldly every four minutes. The 1994 study used two whirlpool baths, while the 1997 study used hot packs and ice packs. In both cases, Myer et al. found that, while contrast therapy caused fluctuations in skin temperature, the muscle temperature did not change significantly during contrast therapy. The body may be able to divert blood flow so that deep muscle temperature is maintained at a fairly constant level. Having this assumption about contrast therapy cancels a compelling study to look for other possible mechanisms.
Maps Contrast bath therapy
Treatment
Contrast bath can be used to reduce swelling around the wound or to assist recovery from exercise. It can also significantly improve muscle recovery after exercise by reducing the level of blood lactate concentration. For any injuries that appear with swelling and palpable heat, and visible redness - such as strain/sprains - contrast bath is contraindicated during the acute inflammatory stage. Acute inflammation begins at the time of injury and lasts for about 72 hours.
Effectiveness in athletic recovery
The current evidence base suggests that contrast water therapy (CWT) is superior to passive recovery or rest after exercise; The magnitude of this effect may be most relevant for elite sports populations. There appears to be little difference in recovery outcomes between CWT and other popular recovery interventions such as cold water immersion and active recovery.
In a review of immersion therapy in general, Ian Wilcock, John Cronin, and Wayne Hing showed that most of the benefits of contrast therapy stem from hydrostatic pressures from water, not temperature variations.
See also
- Ice bath
References
- http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/injury-recovery-and-conditioning
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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