Laboratory evaluation of various cold therapy modalities.

An attempt to evaluate the potential of four modalities to cool soft tissue mass has been done under laboratory conditions using canines. The cooling of deep soft tissues within the thigh after application of various cooling devices was recorded over a 60-min exposure period. Under these circumstances, ice performed best, a frozen gel pack performed in a parallel but slightly less efficient manner. Two other modalities, an inflatable bladder filled with refrigerant gas and an endothermic chemical reaction, were least efficient in cooling.