Effects of Cold Modality Application With Static and Intermittent Pneumatic Compression on Tissue Temperature and Systemic Cardiovascular Responses

Background:In the therapeutic setting, cryotherapy with varying levels of intermittent cyclical compression often replaces an ice bag and elastic wrap. However, little is known about the cardiovascular strain and tissue temperature decreases associated with cooling and intermittent compression.Hypothesis:The authors hypothesized that higher levels of intermittent compression will result in greater reductions of tissue temperature and that all cold modalities will cause acute increases in cardiovascular strain.Design:Experimental crossover repeated measure design.Methods:Ten healthy subjects (23 ± 3 years) volunteered for 4 cryotherapy sessions (30-minute treatments with 30-minute passive recovery). Treatments included ice with elastic wrap and Game Ready (GR) with no, medium (5-50 mmHg), and high compression (5-75 mmHg). Throughout the experiment, oral, skin surface, and intramuscular quadriceps temperatures were measured along with mean arterial pressure, heart rate, rate pressure product, forearm blood ...