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tips and tricks

Longer-lasting heat therapy “on the go”

I enjoyed Dr D. Brady Pregerson's Practical Pointer, "Heat Therapy 'On the Go'". In my experience, however, the improvised heat source he suggests—a hand towel soaked in hot water and inserted in a zip-lock bag—cools too quickly. A strategy I have found that provides heat for 10 to 20 minutes is to fill a sock with dry rice that has been microwaved. The hot rice can also be put in a zip-lock bag, but this must then be covered with a hand towel to protect the skin. This is a solution that anyone can afford; it helps abscesses to point and drain and provides relief for back or neck pain.

—— Shannon Steward, ARNP-C

Thank you for your suggestion and your improvement on my original concept.

—— D. Brady Pregerson, MD
Los Angeles