Can heat compress be used during the remission period of chronic pain?

Hot compresses can be used during the remission period of most chronic pains, but there are also a few special types of chronic pains or those with underlying diseases that do not recommend hot compresses. It is impossible to generalize.

I have met Lao Zhou, who has been suffering from lumbar muscle strain for almost ten years. He has no other maintenance habits during the remission period. He likes to wrap a hot water bottle in a towel and apply it on his waist for 15 minutes every day before going to bed. Before, the muscles on both sides of his waist were as hard as sun-dried slate, and it was difficult to bend down to tie his shoelaces. After applying it for more than half a year, he now walks with his grandson in the park for two hours on weekends without getting sore. In fact, the principle is not complicated. During the remission period of chronic pain, there is generally no redness, swelling, heat and pain during the acute attack. Most of the local muscles are in a state of tension and spasm. Warm hot compresses can relax the tight muscles, accelerate local blood circulation, and remove lactic acid and chronic inflammation accumulated in the soft tissues. The "pain-causing garbage" of sexual metabolites are metabolized faster, and the feeling of comfort naturally increases. When we sit for a long time, our shoulders and necks are so stiff that we can't lift our arms, when our cold legs have not relapsed in autumn, or when our stiff neck has been relieved for two or three days and there is still some soreness and swelling after applying it, we can all feel obvious relaxation.

However, this cannot be overstated. In the past two months, I met a rheumatoid patient who had used hot compresses. She had heard others say that hot compresses nourished her joints. During the remission period, she wrapped her knees in sea salt and applied it for more than half an hour. After applying it for a week, her knees were so swollen that she could not bend. She was in so much pain that she could not walk. When she went for a follow-up check, she realized that it was a contraindication to hot compresses. For chronic pains such as rheumatoid and gout, which have clear autoimmune inflammation or metabolic inflammation, even in the remission period, the local inflammation has not completely subsided. After the hot compress expands the blood vessels, it may promote inflammatory exudation and accidentally induce an acute attack. ； There are also people who have diabetic peripheral neuropathy or localized skin hypoesthesia. They are very sensitive to temperature. Even if they are in remission, they should not apply it casually. I have also seen a young man in his twenties who slept with a hot water bag to relieve lumbar muscle strain in winter. When he woke up, he had three large blisters on his waist. The original pain was not relieved, but instead he added to the trouble of burns.

If you are really not sure whether you can apply it, you can try it for three to five minutes first. After applying it, you feel that the soreness and swelling are relieved and your whole body is relaxed, then you can continue. If after applying it, the area becomes swollen, hot or even painful, stop immediately. If you are really not sure, it is not too late to ask a doctor about the type of pain you have before trying again. If it is suitable for application, you don’t need to buy a hot compress device that costs thousands. An ordinary hot water bottle wrapped with a towel is enough. The temperature should be controlled at 40 to 45 degrees. It only needs to be warm to the touch but not hot to the skin. Apply it for 15 to 20 minutes each time. Don’t fall asleep while applying it for a long time. Low-temperature burns are really painful.