One of the hottest topics in the medical community today is the use of heat as a treatment for pain and inflammation. Many people suffer from some type of chronic condition or injury that limits their activity. Heat therapy has long been recommended for use in helping to alleviate discomfort. Here’s a closer look at this often misunderstood treatment and its effectiveness for pain relief for hip pain.
Heat Therapy
When you look into the basics of heat therapy, you’ll quickly find that it isn’t a magical cure-all. Anyone at any age can experience heat therapy to help relieve muscle soreness and stiffness. It isn’t always effective, however. You may have to try several different treatments before you find relief. Depending on the condition causing your pain, you may require multiple sessions before you find the relief you need.
There are a variety of reasons why people may be seeking out heat therapy for their pain conditions. Some conditions, such as a herniated disc, may require that you take an anti-inflammatory medication first before undergoing heat therapy. Other conditions, such as arthritis and tendonitis, may require that you first go through physical therapy to strengthen your muscles and to avoid further injury. Heat therapy is best reserved as a last resort when all other methods have been tried unsuccessfully. Only after the initial pain has been relieved should you consider using it to treat a chronic condition.
Blood Flow
Heat works by increasing blood flow and circulation in the area of pain. This increased flow of blood and oxygen will help restore and protect the area, reducing inflammation and swelling. It also promotes the healing process by increasing your body’s immune system response. Heat is one of the most effective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) used for pain relief for hip pain. While NSAIDs come with some unwanted side effects, such as stomach pain and ulcers, they do provide pain relief for hip pain.
Can Ice penetrate the tissue?
When it comes to heat therapy for pain relief, ice may be better. Ice can penetrate the tissue much more quickly than heat can and therefore will quickly get to the root of the pain. Ice therapy will also promote the healing process because it slows down the thrombosis and blockage of blood vessels. As well, ice has the added benefit of easing the swelling and pain of sore muscles.
So, is heat good pain relief for hip pain? The answer is that it depends. If you already have a good idea of what your particular pain needs are, then the ice should probably be more effective. However, if you don’t know what is causing your pain, it is best to seek medical consultation.
Hot Compresses
You should always try to avoid getting hot compresses to apply to your painful areas, but when it comes to heating pads, ice works just as well if not better than heat. This makes perfect sense because heat can only penetrate so far and ice penetrates all the way through. The same is true for ice, which works the fastest. The faster you apply ice, the faster the recovery.
Heat can be used for both acute and chronic pain, but to get the most benefit, ice will give you the quickest pain relief. However, if you suffer from chronic hip pain, you should use heat therapy regularly. One of the keys to pain relief for hip pain is to ensure that your body is receiving enough blood flow. When your body is inflamed, it requires more blood to bring healing to that area, and that blood has to get to the site of inflammation to do its job. Ice helps to reduce the inflammation so that the blood flow is increased, which brings oxygen and nutrients to the site and promotes healing.
