Cryotherapy has many reported uses, yet overall there is limited published conclusive research on its use as a complementary therapy. Here are some of the areas where researchers are finding some theoretical benefits.
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One of the more popular uses for cryotherapy is for recovery after exercise, and research on athletes and high-intensity exercise subjects suggests that there may be something to this.
In a study published in October in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 12 middle- and long-distance runners in China were treated with different cryotherapy methods after exercise. The findings suggest that WBC may reduce muscle damage and inflammation better than other methods of recovery. However, the study was small, so further research is needed to fully understand the relationship between cold therapy and athletics.
Still, other small studies found that WBC decreased muscle pain and inflammation and boosted post-exercise recovery, according to a research paper published in Frontiers in Physiology.
Cryotherapy&#;s numbing and inflammation-lowering effects may benefit people with chronic pain.
The authors of the review in Pain and Therapy postulated that cryotherapy could be an easy, low-risk option for managing chronic pain associated with diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis (an inflammatory disease of the spine). WBC and ice application both provided pain relief for many of the patients included in the studies. However, research on the long-term effects of cryotherapy on chronic pain is lacking, as are standardized protocols.
Cryotherapy may help soothe skin conditions for some people.
Research suggests that WBC may help lower inflammation and relieve itching in people with atopic dermatitis (eczema), a chronic skin condition that causes dry, itchy, and inflamed skin. However, the study sample was too small to determine whether WBC is an effective treatment for atopic dermatitis. What&#;s more, the American Academy of Dermatology Association doesn&#;t recommend using WBC as a skin treatment at this time.
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More research is needed to confirm this possible benefit.
In addition to measuring post-exercise muscle recovery, the authors of the study in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research also gathered information about how well runners slept after receiving cryotherapy. They found that runners reported better sleep quality after WBC than other forms of cryotherapy.
And a study published in July in the European Journal of Sport Science reveals that active men who received WBC after an evening workout tossed and turned less during the night and reported significantly better sleep than those who didn&#;t.
Through a specific cryotherapy method known as cryoablation, which is performed surgically, healthcare providers can use extreme cold (liquid nitrogen) to freeze tumor cells on the surface or inside the body, according to the Cleveland Clinic. A doctor inserts an instrument called a cryoprobe through a small incision in the skin and applies the cold with a spraying device. The extreme cold freezes the targeted tissue, causing tumor cells to die. Cryoablation is often used for bone tumors, prostate cancer, and liver cancer, according to a research article.
Cryotherapy is also a common procedure for treating skin lesions. These lesions can be benign (not cancerous), precancerous, or superficially cancerous (skin cancer that&#;s on the surface of your skin), according to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. The frozen skin blisters and peels off, which allows healthy new skin to grow in its place, notes the Cleveland Clinic.
Cryotherapy machines are devices and equipment used for the conditioning of the body using cold air/gases, liquids or objects.
These include the cryotherapy chamber, the localized cryotherapy machine also known as a cryo facial machine, cryolipolysis machine used for CoolSculpting® and more.
These new technologies have been developed to speed up the process of applying targeted cold treatments and cryogenic therapy, to make them more effective, accessible and more time-efficient.
In this article, we discuss a number of these new technologies and what areas they are used in, how they are applied, we discuss how much is a cryotherapy machine with a brief overview of the costs.
Please note, in the cryotherapy industry, many terms are used interchangeably to refer to the same equipment.
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