Shoulder Pain - Ice or Heat? (which is better for pain relief?)
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- Опубліковано 30 вер 2024
- If you've been struggling with shoulder pain, you might be wondering if it's better to use ice for pain relief vs. using heat for pain relief.
The answer to that question really depends on two things:
- What's causing your shoulder pain?
- What are you hoping to accomplish?
For example, if you have rotator cuff tendonitis, you might favor ice.
And if you have rotator cuff tendinosis, you might favor heat.
At other times, it might be beneficial to use BOTH ice and heat in the same day.
Again, it really comes down to the cause of your shoulder pain, as well as what you hope the ice/heat will do for you.
In this video, I'll explain how to determine which will work best for you, including how to determine if you should be using both heat and ice.
I hope it helps! Please leave questions and comments below :-)
- Luke Gordon, DPT
Doctor of Physical Therapy/Owner of Gordon Physical Therapy
www.gordonphys...
I appreciate that you take the time to share this information publicly. I have been in and out of medical care for over a year, to no avail, but I am finally understanding what I have through online resources like yours. I don’t know why the medical professionals I’ve seen weren’t able to explain it so clearly. Anyway I am doing the best I can now based on the information I have. Thanks again.
Thank you for your kind words, Leah! I'm happy to hear that the videos have been helpful. Best of luck with your shoulder issue :-)
Dr. Gordon. I remember your video about tendonosis, which was similar to this one. I've been using heat as you recommended and I know God is using you to change lives like mine.
I had tendonosis in both shoulders and the heat is curing me up to this day. I will DEFINITELY be contacting your office when I get my settlement within the next month or two. If people can pay for Tele visits, they can also pay for life-changing UA-cam videos! God bless you, your family and your practice. Mark my words....... you WILL be hearing from me soon 🙏🏽 THANK YOU
That's great! I'm happy to hear you're doing so well. Stay positive :-)
The pain I'm experiencing is from my nape, to my shoulder and right arm. It's been a week already and I don't want to endure it for a long time. Thank you for the information I got from you. Hopefully, it will remove my shoulder pain.
I hope it helps! I also just posted a video about some self-massage techniques that might help as well. Check it out and let me know what you think :-)
Thanks a million Doctor. I will definitely try both for my right shoulder pain that has been going on for a couple of years now.
You are very welcome, Mario! Thank you for watching and commenting :-)
Thank you for this! I paint and after using my arm wrong all day I hurt. I just joined the gym to help me correctly strengthen my shoulder blade muscles. I identified with 4:50 minute about when it starts to creep up the neck and give slight headaches. I’ve never had headaches so I know it stems from this
I also paint and everytime I paint I’m in severe pain.
Good clear tips. My shoulder issue has been going on for over 1 month now. I think I got it from starting wide grip pull ups. I have been heating (mostly hot shower) and then stretching. Nothing is particularly acute- just certain movements like reaching up above my head with thumb pointed outwards is still pretty uncomfortable. I can do nearly all other full range movements with very little pain. My worse pain is maybe 3 out of 10 and I sleep fine fortunately. At this point, do you think I fall more into the heat category? I bought one of those shoulder slip wraps that has a gel insert (120F)- should I keep it on for 20 minutes a few times a day before stretching?
I also heard that gently hanging from a pull up bar is a great stretch. I keep my feet lightly on the ground. I've been doing these too- don't notice a big difference but it's definitely not any worse.
THANKS!
I feel cold and pain in my upper back shoulder therefore I always have to wear a jacket even in the summer or I have to lie down on my back to keep it warm please let me what should I do I have this pain more than 12 years please help me thank you.
Can I use Orthopaedic heat belt for frozen shoulder?
What about ice first for 20 minutes and then heat for 20 minutes right after? I have severe tendinosis and a bone spur and extreme frozen shoulder. Also a bankart lesion and biceps tendon tear. What would you reccomend?
Damn what happened?
Bone spur is probably surgery. Bankart lesion maybe so too. Bicep tendon certainly. After those heal up, increase mobility while strengthen the Rotator cuff.
Does the pain tell you that your shoulder flared up , or would you see swelling ?
Suffered a Grade 3 tear ac joint separation, and this is my 1st week in. Will the sauna be good for the ligament repair?
The sauna shouldn't hurt, and you might follow it up with ice as well. K-taping is also helpful for stabilizing the AC joint.
I have a pain in my left shoulder and arm and after ultrasound and x-ray the doctor diagnosed the pain to a small partial-thickness tear involving the distal left supraspinatus tendon. What to use for this ... hot or cold ?
Thanks for the useful video mate.
I have dual shoulder tendonosis that flared up severely after a hard gym session two months ago when taking high dose Prednisolone (masked all my pain - unintentional as using for other reason).
Since then I had a Cortisone injection one side and have iced it several times.
Ice doesn't resolve it. Heat definitely helps but I am worried it masks the injury and when training I can falsely think my shoulder is okay. Only when cooling down do I then suffer the consequences!! Maybe heat ... with caution.
I would say use heat during the day to improve the blood flow and healing potential, but don't get too far ahead of yourself when doing your exercises. And definitely stay away from the steroids! Good luck!
Thanks for the great advise.. Owing to the Covid Omicron wave, I cancelled my physio appointments, and now my shoulder pain is flaring up. I am starting to find out that heat really helps but so can ice. So I guess its heat to heal and iced to drop the inflammation from over use.
That sounds about right to me. I hope you're doing well!
Hi Doc, i sprained my shoulder muscle 8-10 days ago while bench pressing and I've been icing it from last 4-5 days. Normally i don't have pain in there but the anterior shoulder muscle flares up while bench pressing. So shall i keep icing it or i should heat it now.
And one more question Doc. Can i keep working out with that little amount of pain or i should rest my shoulder for some days.
Revert would be much helpful and appreciated.
Thanks
Hi, Sandesh. I thought I already responded to this question... did my response come through on another video possibly? If not, I'll be happy to respond again.
@@GordonPhysicalTherapy Apologies doc. My query mistakenly got posted two times.
This is a natural body response called Inflammation ( with "itis" at the end of the word. With the thefour cardinal signs of inflammation I use cold pack for as long as inflammation persist. Prolong cold application can produce vasodilation by Shuntting effect on our blood vessels...
Thanks for your comment!
Hi Luke! I am 9 weeks out from labrum and rotator cuff (supraspinatus) surgery and am having a lot of discomfort after PT trying to get my ROM back.. would ice or heat work best at this stage? Or maybe a combo of both? Appreciate your videos!
Hi, Matt. I would recommend heat, especially early in the day and before stretching. Heat will help loosen up the shoulder and surrounding soft tissue and will help with blood supply. If your shoulder feels really irritated at the end of the day, then I'd suggest using ice. You can always use ice after an aggressive PT session as well. I hope that helps! Good luck getting your ROM back! It can be a long process, so hang in there :-)
Thank you, this is what I wanted to hear for my case.
You're welcome! Thanks for watching :-)
Anyone know if I should take cold or hot showers at night?? I have a bad shoulder and chest pain. Pain comes more at night. Thank you so mych
I would try a warm shower to see if that helps.
What about frozen shoulders? What's best to use heat or ice?
For frozen shoulder, I like to use heat and an active warm-up before aggressive stretching, and then you can use ice afterwards to calm down the inflammation.
Luke Ive been sleeping with my left arm straight out with my head laying on my shoulder and now when I move my arm a certain way, I get a terrible 'burning' pain in my upper arm muscle. What would this be and how can I get relief. Also I am now having pain under my back shoulder blade. Is there an exercise to help with the shoulder blade pain as well? Thanks so much
Hi, Phyllis. While it's hard to say for sure, that burning pain in the side of your upper arm is likely pain coming from your rotator cuff. Laying like you described is likely pinching that top RC muscle, which we call the supraspinatus. Healing that type of pain involves improving blood flow and strength in the RC muscles. I have some videos on that which should help, including my video on how to strengthen the rotator cuff. Your pain under the shoulder blade could be coming from another muscle, such as the serratus anterior or subscapularis. I'd work on the rotator cuff issue first, and if the shoulder blade pain doesn't go away, have a local PT take a look at you. I hope this helps!
I am a tennis player I am having shoulder pain since half a month I have tried everything like ice, physiotherapy,etc but nothing is working pls help me
Did the physicotherapy help at all? And what was their diagnosis of your shoulder pain?
Hi Doc..plz confirm what would be good for treatment of frozen shoulder
Ice pack or heat pack?
Heat to warm the shoulder up, along with active exercise, before you do your stretches. Ice after or later in the day to help calm down any inflammation. I hope that helps!
Thank you so much for this. My mom and I have been complaining about shoulder pain for 2full weeks now. And its just constant throughout the day and night. Will definitely try the heat treatment.
Thank you! What about if you have bursitis (inflamation) and the tendinosis?
You're welcome! If you have both, I'd try heat and ice and see which one works best for you. Or, you can always use heat earlier in the day and ice later in the day, especially if your inflammation increases later in the day.
Thanks a lot .You have been à tremendous help for me by your very explicite explications.
You are welcome!
What about a.c. joint pain with a knot?
I like ice for AC joint pain, but I also like heat to treat the surrounding muscles. Some trial and error might help you decide which approach works best for you.
Hi iv had bursitis an now frozen shoulder in both arms. My left arm is in the thoring stage an is stuck an now my right shoulder is stuck but im in severe pain. Physio isn't doing much. Im missrable and cry alot because im in so much pain 24/7 iv been like this for about a yr im out of work now. No painkillers seem to help at all 😫
Iv used heat packs so much to the point iv left red marks on my skin but im so confused whether I should use ice packs or heat ? I really need a miracle to heal me 😫😫😫
Wet useful info. Thanks 🙏
Would I do the same for ongoing hip bursitis?
You're welcome! yes, I'd recommend the same approach for hip bursitis.
Thanks again to the info
Absolutely! Thank you for watching :-)
Hi Doc, i sprained my shoulder muscle 8-10 days ago while bench pressing and I've been icing it from last 4-5 days. Normally i don't have pain in there but the anterior shoulder muscle flares up while bench pressing. So shall i keep icing it or i should heat it now.
And one more question Doc. Can i keep working out with that little amount of pain or i should rest my shoulder for some days.
Revert would be much helpful and appreciated.
Thanks
Yes, I think you can safely switch from ice to heat at this point. And you can always use heat early in the day and ice later in the day, especially if your shoulder gets irritated later in the day. I recommend you stick with pain-free exercises for now. So avoid bench presses until you can do they pain-free (starting with lighter weights). I hope that helps!
@@GordonPhysicalTherapy Duly noted Doc. Appreciate the revert.
Thank you.
@@GordonPhysicalTherapy Hi doc would you recommend dead hanging for increasing blood flow to help with shoulder tendinosis?
@@Blackfeather7777 bro i have the same problem
I cant do full range of motion and when i try to do it hurts
So can you tell me bro what helped u the most?
An ice pack or heat therapy and exercises?
@@sasuke2565 bro, apply hot water bag on the affected area for 10-15 mins twice a day and try to lift with full range of motion (as much as you can) with lighter weights and within some days you'll recover from this injury. Also keep your protein intake high for proper recover.
I didn’t do much in order to hurt my shoulder. All I did was some floor stretches as do regularly. Pain on the side of shoulder and slightly anterior. High intensity pain, can hardly move my arm. Three days now and I’ve finally went for a heating pad and two aspirin. I hope this clears up quickly. Thank you for your video.
Please help mate. 31 year old athlete. Have full ROM; 14 months now of shoulder pain. MRI stated “There is mild intermediate signal supraspinatus greater than infraspinatus tendon, consistent with tendinosis. There is mild tendinosis subscapularis tendon. Trace subacromial subdeltoid bursitis. - Impression: 1) Os Acromiale 2) Mild RC tendinosis.” What should i do? I will be doing your RC exercises from previous videos. But really i am desperate for this to heal; so i can continue athletics without this always interfering. Thanks! BTW; could the Os Acromiale be causing all of this? It originally started 14 months ago during an intensive weight lifting regime.
hurting pain shoulder blade
I'm sorry to hear that... I hope this helps!
Hey Doc thanks for the video
I woke up one day and i have shoulder pain it just flare up with certain movements.
My doc said that it is inflammation he did MRI they gave me steroids twice total 16 injections.
But pain got back again i tired everything.
Can you please advise me
Ps. I workout but I stopped since i had pain 6 months ago.
Totally Anecdotal but Heat is the only thing that’s helping treat my rotator cuff injury. Icing does nothing
That was a bit confusing but helpful buddy, thank you
Glad it helped
Great video, thank you.
Glad you liked it! Thank you for your comment :-)
I'm getting relieved with Ice. Thank you
Thank you so much that was really helpful!
What about a tear on supraespinoso? I need surgery but I am avoiding it
I will do the heat during the day and ice post workout and at night. Thank you!
Sounds good!
Deciding on surgery really depends on if you can reduce your pain and build your strength. If you can do those two things and regain use of your arm, you might be able to avoid surgery. And if you can't, you might decide surgery is worth it.
@@GordonPhysicalTherapy 🙏
Thanks man
You're welcome!
Would icy hot work OK for heat?
I prefer actual heat, but icy hot can be helpful as well.
Thank u
Video starts 1:12
What happens before that? Is it frozen?
You take too long and keep repeating. Just get to the point.
I'll keep that in mind for future videos. Thanks for watching!