1. Hot/Cold using cold?
   • to decrease pain
   • to decrease swelling
   • to decrease inflammation of joints
   • to decrease muscle spasm
2. How does cold help?
   • by blocking nerve conduction
   • by slowing the activity of the muscle spindle
   • by releasing of endorphins
   • by decreasing swelling through vasoconstriction; this decreases blood pressure and blocks the relase of histamine
3. When should I use cold?
   • 24-78 hours following injury or post-orthopaedic surgery
   • to decrease arthritis joint pain
   • to decrease muscle spasm
   • to facilitate muscle contraction
4. What are the precautions to using cold?
   • area with compromised circulation
   • Raynauld's disease (blancing of the finger when exposed to cold)
   • allergy to cold
   • angina pectoris or cardiac disorders (when using ice over the chest)
   • history of frostbite
   • impaired sensation (i.e. numbness due to a pinched nerve)
   • do not fall asleep with an ice pack on
   • do not place directly on stitches or an open wound
   • if unsure whether to use cold pack, check with your therapist
5. How do I apply cold?
   • 15-20 minutes depending upon the intensity of the cold source and the depth of tissue to be reached
   • the skin underlying the cooling agent will redden, check the skin frequently for signs of overcooling (blanched skin)
   • can be used with compression and elevation to further decrease swelling
   • leave at least 2 hours between cold applications
   • if unsure how to apply cold, check with your therapist
6. Method
   • depends on accessibilty of the body part to be treated and the size of the area to be cooled
   • Cold Packs - inexpensively purchased - place a lukewarm moist towel between the pack and the skin to improve the conduction of cold
   • Ice Massage - over small area - frozen water in a paper cup are easy to handle - rub with small overlapping circles
   • Cold Baths - practical for hands and feet for complete coverage between 13-18 degrees celsius

Hot/Cold OATLEY HOT N' COLD THERAPY PRODUCTS?

Hot/Cold do they work?

Muscle pain in neck, spot area, lower back, headaches - From nature the plant seed with the most moisture is the oat seed. Which is very important to have a warm moist heat for muscle pain relief. As the product is heated in the microwave the moisture is released by the seed. To re-hydrate the seeds it is neccessary to freeze the product, that way the seed - by nature - will re-hydrate itself from the ice crystals and frost from the freezer.

Joint pain wrist, elbow, foot, knee - Frozen the product gives off a dry
cool effect for use on joints. It cools down the inflamation of the joint
giving relief.

How do I use the care for the products?

Life cycle is one year or more if cover is used when applying, and stored in freezer when not in use.

Managing Pain with Heat

1. Hot/Cold using Heat?
   • to relieve pain
   • to relieve muscle spasm
   • to increase the ability of muscle and other tissue to stretch
   • to improve the circulation to underlying muscle tissue
2. When should you use heat?
   • for pain relief not associated with acute trauma or acute inflammatory conditions
   • to relieve muscle spams and muscle tightness
   • to enhance muscular flexibility or range of motion of your joints
   • for soft tissue mobilization, i.e., scars and capsular tightness
   • for reduction of chronic dwelling
3. When should you NOT use heat or be careful using heat?
   • on an acutely inflamed or swollen joint
   • over an open wound or infected area
   • over an area with poor sensation/feeling or poor circulation, i.e., vascular problems associated with diabetes
   • the presence of a confirmed malignancy/cancer by your doctor
   • another medical condition such as hemophilia
4. What form of heat should be used?

   Oatley Hot n' Cold Therapy products are forms of heat that are superficial. For deep heating methods such as ultrasound or exercise ask your physiotherapist for information. The Oatley forms are listed below.
   

   • Oatley pillows
   • Oatley neck wraps
   • Oatley shoulder straps
   • Oatley mitts
   • Oatley eye/palm pads
   • Oatley spot pads
   • custom sizes are orderable with 48 hour turn around for shipping
5. How to apply heat?

   You may use directly from freezer to microwave 1-3 minutes max, or wrap in foil and bake in toaster oven at 250 degrees for 10 minutes - for heat applications. Or use on joint pain areas directly from freezer for cold applications. Return directly to freezer after cooling down for two hours.

   • test temperature before applying should be comfortably warm but, not hot
   • stays warm for 45-60 minutes
   • reuseable
   • store in freezer to extend life of product and to re-hydrate the oat seeds inside
   • suggest to use with cloth cover to help keep clean
   • use of a moist fabric provides more even conduction of heat
   • if any sign of pain remove and allow to cool off
   • do not use on burns
6. How does heat help?

   Heat is also used to increase a person's tolerance to streching of tight muscular or capsular structures and to help mobilize chronic scars which may inhibit our bodies' normal degree of movement for a particular muscle/joint or limb. With moist heat applied the collagen fibers inside that structure lengthen more easily in response to a stretch.