Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow Long to IceHow Many DaysWhen to StopWhat Ice DoesIce vs. HeatMaking an Ice PackFAQ
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
How Long to Ice
How Many Days
When to Stop
What Ice Does
Ice vs. Heat
Making an Ice Pack
FAQ
You shouldice an injuryfor 20 minutes at a time. Studies have found that this offers the greatest reduction in pain while limiting unwanted effects like numbness, burning, and redness.
This article discusses the use of ice on injuries. It also addresses how long to apply ice safely and how to make your own ice pack.
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How Long to Ice an Injury
Ice should be applied to an injury for no more than 20 minutes at a time. Longer applications may cause tissue damage. You can apply ice several times each day.
Is It OK to Use Ice for 30 minutes at a Time?This is not advised. Icing an injury for 30 minutes can lead to uncomfortable effects such as numbness and burning, or even tissue damage.
Is It OK to Use Ice for 30 minutes at a Time?
This is not advised. Icing an injury for 30 minutes can lead to uncomfortable effects such as numbness and burning, or even tissue damage.
R.I.C.E. Treatment for Acute Musculoskeletal Injury
How Many Days Should You Ice an Injury?
In general, it’s OK to use ice for several days in a row as long as you have pain or swelling. The more severe the pain or swelling, the more times in the day you may need to apply ice.
Ice for 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Wait two hours between ice sessions before applying ice again. Do so as often as necessary until the pain and swelling go away.
When to Stop Icing
You may not be able to tolerate the full 20 minutes. Use theCBAN methodto tune into your body’s feedback about when to stop:
You could also try keeping the ice on for at least five minutes, taking it off, and only applying it again after 30 minutes.
How to Avoid Frostbite From an Ice Pack
Does Ice Speed Healing?
While icing an injury can help reduce pain and inflammation, ice doesn’t speed up healing. Your recovery time won’t be shorter because you treated your injury with ice.
When you injure a body part, your body goes through the inflammatory process. This helps heal the tissue.Hallmarks of inflammationinclude:
Inflammation happens when your body sends blood and cells to the injured part to help it heal. Swelling and pain happen as a result of this process. Ice can help control those symptoms.
Ice causesvasoconstriction, a narrowing of blood vessels. When this happens, less blood reaches the injured area. This helps keep swelling down. Ice also helps decrease pain signals.
Is Ice or Heat Better for Treating an Injury?
When to Use Ice vs. Heat
Ice and heat are both effective ways of treating injuries, but they should be used for different kinds of injuries and at different points during the healing process.
Ice can help relieve swelling and inflammation and reduce pain, especially in the first 72 hours after the injury occurs.
When to Use Heat or Ice for Knee Pain
Can You Use Ice and Heat Together?
For acute injuries, it’s best not to combine ice and heat together. Heat won’t help in the first 48 hours. Apply ice instead.
Heat and ice serve different purposes. Heat brings more blood to an area, whereas ice reduces blood flow. Heat is used to reduce joint stiffness and muscle spasm. Ice is used to ease pain and tenderness as well as reduce swelling and inflammation.
For some conditions, likechronic pain, multiple therapies may be needed to find relief. For people with back pain, icing for the first 48 hours after pain starts can ease symptoms. After those 48 hours, applying heat can help the muscles relax.
IceTo ease pain and tendernessTo reduce swelling and inflammationTo reduce bleedingFor an injury or inflammationDo not use for longer than 20 minutes at a timeHeatTo reduce joint stiffness and muscle spasmTo encourage blood flow to an areaFor sore muscles, especially after exerciseDo not use within the first 48 hours after injury
IceTo ease pain and tendernessTo reduce swelling and inflammationTo reduce bleedingFor an injury or inflammationDo not use for longer than 20 minutes at a time
To ease pain and tenderness
To reduce swelling and inflammation
To reduce bleeding
For an injury or inflammation
Do not use for longer than 20 minutes at a time
HeatTo reduce joint stiffness and muscle spasmTo encourage blood flow to an areaFor sore muscles, especially after exerciseDo not use within the first 48 hours after injury
To reduce joint stiffness and muscle spasm
To encourage blood flow to an area
For sore muscles, especially after exercise
Do not use within the first 48 hours after injury
Thermotherapy or Cryotherapy for Osteoarthritis
Making Your Own Ice Pack
Icing works best with a proper ice pack. If you don’t have one, you can make a refreezable one at home. Here’s how:
When you apply the ice pack, make sure to put a layer or two of fabric, such as a towel, between the pack and your skin. This will protect you from frostbite.
How to Make and Use a Cold Compress
Summary
Ice helps reduce the pain and swelling of an injury. You can ice an injury a few times a day, but avoid keeping the ice on for more than 20 minutes at once. When the injury feels numb, remove the ice.
If you don’t have an ice pack, you can make one with water, rubbing alcohol, and a plastic bag.
Frequently Asked Questions
You could develop frostbite and tissue death. There also have been isolated instances of compartment syndrome (a painful muscular condition) and perniosis (inflammation of small blood vessels in reaction to cold exposure).
7 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mutlu S, Yılmaz E.The effect of soft tissue injury cold application duration on symptoms, edema, joint mobility, and patient satisfaction: a randomized controlled trial.J Emerg Nurs. 2020;46(4):449-59. doi:10.1016/j.jen.2020.02.017Johns Hopkins Medicine.Patient guide to ice techniques.Wang ZR, Ni GX.Is it time to put traditional cold therapy in rehabilitation of soft-tissue injuries out to pasture?World J Clin Cases. 2021;9(17):4116-4122. doi:10.12998/wjcc.v9.i17.4116Khoshnevis S, Craik NK, Diller KR.Cold-induced vasoconstriction may persist long after cooling ends: an evaluation of multiple cryotherapy units.Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2015;23(9):2475–2483. doi:10.1007/s00167-014-2911-yJohns Hopkins Medicine.Ice packs vs. warm compresses for pain.American College of Rheumatology.Back pain.Piana LE, Garvey KD, Burns H, et al.The cold, hard facts of cryotherapy in orthopedics.Am J Orthop (Belle Mead NJ). 2018;47(9):10.12788/ajo.2018.0075. doi:10.12788/ajo.2018.0075
7 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mutlu S, Yılmaz E.The effect of soft tissue injury cold application duration on symptoms, edema, joint mobility, and patient satisfaction: a randomized controlled trial.J Emerg Nurs. 2020;46(4):449-59. doi:10.1016/j.jen.2020.02.017Johns Hopkins Medicine.Patient guide to ice techniques.Wang ZR, Ni GX.Is it time to put traditional cold therapy in rehabilitation of soft-tissue injuries out to pasture?World J Clin Cases. 2021;9(17):4116-4122. doi:10.12998/wjcc.v9.i17.4116Khoshnevis S, Craik NK, Diller KR.Cold-induced vasoconstriction may persist long after cooling ends: an evaluation of multiple cryotherapy units.Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2015;23(9):2475–2483. doi:10.1007/s00167-014-2911-yJohns Hopkins Medicine.Ice packs vs. warm compresses for pain.American College of Rheumatology.Back pain.Piana LE, Garvey KD, Burns H, et al.The cold, hard facts of cryotherapy in orthopedics.Am J Orthop (Belle Mead NJ). 2018;47(9):10.12788/ajo.2018.0075. doi:10.12788/ajo.2018.0075
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Mutlu S, Yılmaz E.The effect of soft tissue injury cold application duration on symptoms, edema, joint mobility, and patient satisfaction: a randomized controlled trial.J Emerg Nurs. 2020;46(4):449-59. doi:10.1016/j.jen.2020.02.017Johns Hopkins Medicine.Patient guide to ice techniques.Wang ZR, Ni GX.Is it time to put traditional cold therapy in rehabilitation of soft-tissue injuries out to pasture?World J Clin Cases. 2021;9(17):4116-4122. doi:10.12998/wjcc.v9.i17.4116Khoshnevis S, Craik NK, Diller KR.Cold-induced vasoconstriction may persist long after cooling ends: an evaluation of multiple cryotherapy units.Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2015;23(9):2475–2483. doi:10.1007/s00167-014-2911-yJohns Hopkins Medicine.Ice packs vs. warm compresses for pain.American College of Rheumatology.Back pain.Piana LE, Garvey KD, Burns H, et al.The cold, hard facts of cryotherapy in orthopedics.Am J Orthop (Belle Mead NJ). 2018;47(9):10.12788/ajo.2018.0075. doi:10.12788/ajo.2018.0075
Mutlu S, Yılmaz E.The effect of soft tissue injury cold application duration on symptoms, edema, joint mobility, and patient satisfaction: a randomized controlled trial.J Emerg Nurs. 2020;46(4):449-59. doi:10.1016/j.jen.2020.02.017
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Patient guide to ice techniques.
Wang ZR, Ni GX.Is it time to put traditional cold therapy in rehabilitation of soft-tissue injuries out to pasture?World J Clin Cases. 2021;9(17):4116-4122. doi:10.12998/wjcc.v9.i17.4116
Khoshnevis S, Craik NK, Diller KR.Cold-induced vasoconstriction may persist long after cooling ends: an evaluation of multiple cryotherapy units.Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2015;23(9):2475–2483. doi:10.1007/s00167-014-2911-y
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Ice packs vs. warm compresses for pain.
American College of Rheumatology.Back pain.
Piana LE, Garvey KD, Burns H, et al.The cold, hard facts of cryotherapy in orthopedics.Am J Orthop (Belle Mead NJ). 2018;47(9):10.12788/ajo.2018.0075. doi:10.12788/ajo.2018.0075
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