The early development of Heat (Thermal) therapy was almost entirely in the form of Hot Water or hydrotherapy.  The ancient Hindus, Persians, Hebrews and Egyptian all used water in the treatment of various diseases. In Greece and Rome its value reached a much greater recognition whereby Temples were often built at the site of Hot natural springs.

In 1876 Winternitz published his studies on the influence of hydrotherapy upon metabolism, the blood, excretions and other functions of the body.  Today, we continue to employ the use of heat as our ancient healers did for the relief of pain and injury. The delivery system for thermal care is now more sophisticated, specific and convenient.

FlexEze Heat Patches are the latest innovation in Thermotherapy and generate a continuous heat as a result of a simple non-toxic chemical reaction that is air-activated. The patch will deliver a sustained temperature above 40 degrees for approximately 12-15 hours, which is around 20 times longer than Wheat bags or Hot Water Bottles.

This is ideally suited for prolonged application to an injury where maximum delivery of heat can be applied whilst movement is maintained throughout the day. The obvious benefit over wheat packs is the convenience and portability with minimal disruption to your daily routine. FlexEze Heat patches are long lasting, discrete, lightweight and comfortable.

How does Heat Reduce Pain
Thermal signals are transmitted by small myelinated delta fibres with a diameter range of 2 to 5 microns. Upon entering the central nervous system, the thermal fibres travel to the lateral spinothalamic tract. It is thought that thermal receptors are stimulated by changes in their metabolic rates, these changes resulting from the fact that temperature alters the rates of intracellular chemical reactions approximately 2.3 times for each 10 degrees Celsius change.

Muscle spasm is a frequent cause of pain. The reason for this is probably two-fold.  First, the contracting muscle compresses the intramuscular blood vessels and either reduces or cuts of the blood flow. Second, muscle contraction increases the rate of metabolism of the muscle. Therefore, muscle spasm probably causes relative muscle ischemia (reduced blood flow) resulting in ischemic pain.

It is thought lactic acid build up in the tissues, formed during ischemia, coupled with other chemical agents formed in the tissue because of muscle cell damage stimulate pain nerve endings. The pain of ischemia is relieved by supplying oxygen to the tissues.

The physiological mechanism for the inhibition or modulation of pain is known as the "Gate Control Theory" was first postulated by 'Melzack and Wall' in 1965. This theory suggests that after the pain fibres enter the spinal cord they terminate in the Substantia Gelatinosa (SG), a cluster of neurons in the dorsal horn. The pain signals are then transmitted through one or more additional neurons before travelling upwards to the brain, however there are other inputs to the SG in addition to pain fibres.  One of these are signals from thermo-receptors which terminate in the dorsal horn also and from here second order neurons send short axons to terminate in the SG. Most of these terminate on the pain fibre axons before they synapse with the neurons of the SG, thus resulting in presynaptic inhibition.

Therefore signals from thermo-receptors can greatly depress the transmission of pain signals from the pain fibres to the brain.

Recent research has shown that sustained low grade heat is effective and beneficial for pain relief.
The use of FlexEze heat patches delivers this continuous warmth for prolonged hours and can provide effective natural non-drug pain relief to the injured area in a convenient patch.  The flexible nature of the patch allows for easy motion of the region and is discrete and comfortable to wear, delivering all day relief while allowing you to maintain your normal daily routine.

When Should  Heat be Used
Heat has been used for thousands of years in the treatment of different types of pain. Injuries caused by trauma or overuse, such as ligament injuries and muscle strains and tears, are often treated during the acute stage by cooling and compression to limit bleeding. After 48 hours, heat treatment can be introduced to help the healing process by increasing blood flow to the injured area.
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One of the most important effects of thermotherapy is its influence on collagen Fibres which comprise 90% of the Human bodys tendon structure. Consequently Heat increases elasticity of Tendons and therefore allows faster rehabilitation and recovery from such injuries.

Thermotherapy also decreases joint stiffness, muscle tightness and relieves muscle spasm, which further reduces the risk of injury. Heat can be used in both the prevention and rehabilitation of overuse injuries and to combat the after-effects of tom muscles and tendons. It can be valuable during warmup before training sessions and in cold weather.

Heat treatment provides pain relief, makes collagen fibres more extensible, and is of great importance as a means of both preventing and rehabilitating injuries.