Do you know why we use ice for injuries?
As professional martial artists we are bound to see many strains, sprains and bruises. These are just inherent in the martial arts. And the advice we usually give our students is the good old RICE recipe: Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. Of course, anything persistent needs to be looked at by a professional. For the most part, every sports coach, martial arts instructor and ER will likely prescribe OTC painkillers and RICE.
Is ice just for pain, or can it promote healing?
I never thought of this until I started doing a little online research concerning a Cold Therapy unit prescribed by my surgeon. No surprise – I found differing opinions on different blogs and websites. Since I’m just here to provide a review on the cold therapy unit I used, I will give you the links and you can check it out if you choose.
How A Cold Therapy Machine Quickly Helps You Recover from Injury
Icing for Injuries, Tendinitis and Inflammation
Review of a DonJoy IceMan CLEAR3 Cold Therapy Unit
As part of my recovery the DonJoy IceMan cold therapy unit was prescribed by my surgeon for post-arthroscopic adhesive capsulitis release ( also known as frozen shoulder), with biceps tenodesis. I was instructed to wear it constantly – even sleeping if I could tolerate it! I did not sleep with it on – the cold effect would have worn off long before morning. But I did wear it almost continuously for 4 to 5 days post surgery.
Pros
- Very easy to operate. Just fill it with water and ice and plug it in.
- You can purchase the shoulder attachment, knee attachment or a universal attachment. The unit can be used for a variety of injuries.
- The cold effect lasts longer than an ice pack. Especially if you take out some water and add more ice when it starts to melt. You can have cold therapy virtually 24/7 if you have someone helping to maintain the cold temperature..
- Easy to store for re-use if you keep the box and have the room!
- It forces you to rest! Seriously! You can still walk around with ice packs on, and may even be tempted to not use them at all. But when you are wrapped up and plugged into a machine you don’t have a choice. You have to stay put!
Cons
- Sizing needs more options. I am a 5’1″ , nearly 100 lb. female ( don’t get me started about seat belts, movie theater seats, the clutch on my motorcycle, blah blah blah). The shoulder attachment was very large on me, but fit my 5’10” husband well.
- This may be like a 1a., but because it was SO large, I had to develop some hacks to actually hold the attachment in place and where it was supposed to cover: biceps, lats, pecs. I was so full of Velcro I could have stuck to a Velcro wall!
- Again, the size thing. It was heavy, and trying to avoid it resting on my sutures was a bit of a challenge.
- My insurance didn’t cover the cost. The price for the unit, shoulder attachment and tax was in the $200.00 range. (Not complaining about price as it will most likely be used again. )
Summary
Worth it. 
DISCLAIMER: We have not been paid nor compensated in any way from any one for this review. The links we provide are for your education and information only. We do not receive any compensation in any way from any one when you click on any links or purchase any product.