Moist heat therapy uses a wet source to transfer heat to your tissues in order to achieve pain relief. The wet source can take many forms including a hot water bottle, a steam towel, a sauna, a paraffin bath or a moist heating pack like a HotPac or a Theratherm Digital Moist Heating Pack. In…
Unloading knee braces belong to a special category of knee brace that shifts weight bearing pressure from one side of your knee joint to another. The key benefit of these braces is their ability to reduce pain and discomfort for individuals suffering the effects of knee osteoarthritis. As mentioned in an earlier post, patients suffering…
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis, a disease which causes inflammation of the joints. It can literally affect any type of joint present in your body but it most commonly occurs in the joints in your knees, hands, spine and hips. According to the Arthritis Foundation, osteoarthritis currently affects approximately 31 million Americans…
The roots of using electrical stimulation for pain control and relief stretch all the way back to ancient Rome. In about 63 AD, Scribonius Largus reported that standing on an electrical fish at the seashore could reduce pain. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, several devices were used to produce electrical signals for the treatment…
In this post, we examine key questions surrounding the use of a shoulder brace to manage the pain of shoulder injuries or other conditions. By the end of this article, you will be able to understand how shoulder braces work and identify whether your injury might be treatable using such a brace. You should also…
If you’ve ever played a sport or taken up an active hobby, the chances are you’ve come face-to-face with cold therapy. Whether it’s the image of your favorite fictional athlete lowering himself or herself into a vat of icy water or the memory of sitting on the bench tightly clenching an ice pack to a…
There is no such thing as one-size-fits-all when it comes to guiding an individual through the injury recovery process, especially when it comes to the wrist. What may work for one person and his/her wrist injury may not be as effective on another person with the same or a similar wrist injury. Educating yourself and…
Arthritis has become one of the most common conditions in the world and is also one of the most debilitating. In one form or another, it affects approximately 5 million Canadians, which is a prevalence rate of around 15%. The pain and immobility associated with the disease can affect any joint in the body and…