Heating Pads and Creams for Low Back Pain?

[PapaBear]

When I have lower back pain, I alternate between using a heating pad and pain ointment. (I'm currently using some Trixaicin that a friend gave me.) Both the pad and the various ointments say not to use both at the same time, which makes sense. My question is, how long after I use an ointment do I have to wait before I can use a heating pad? A certain number of hours? After a shower?

Thanks.

[Dr Steve]

When I have lower back pain, I alternate between using a heating pad and pain ointment. (I'm currently using some Trixaicin that a friend gave me.) Both the pad and the various ointments say not to use both at the same time, which makes sense. My question is, how long after I use an ointment do I have to wait before I can use a heating pad? A certain number of hours? After a shower?

Thanks.

I looked everywhere I could think of for a concrete answer to this. The problem is that the ointments irritate the skin, causing an increase in blood flow and a feeling of warmth to the area. Adding a heating pad afterward can lead to an increase in irritation and even burning. So you can follow a heating pad with an ointment, but not the other way around. I'd make sure all the tactile effects from the cream are gone before using the heating pad...a shower between them would indeed seem to be safe.

Now, having said all that, heating pads and ointments aren't the best things for low back pain. I'm assuming you've had this checked out and you don't have a slipped disk or anything. The best treatment for long term improvement of low back pain is to make yourself a corset...out of muscle. Building up the muscles around your lower torso will really help prevent and treat chronic intermittent low back pain.

Here's a decent article: http://www.webmd.com/back-pain/exercises-to-reduce-low-back-pain

good luck!


your pal,.


steve