Ice and Ace Wrap and Game Ready® in Decreasing Quadriceps Temperature
Abstract
The Game Ready® system is a popular cooling modality, but little is known about its ability to decrease intramuscular temperature. The purpose of this study was to compare intramuscular temperature decreases caused by six different modalities at different levels of compression. The independent variables were modality (ice, ice and ace wrap, Game Ready® no, low, medium, high) and time (0, 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 minutes). The dependent variable was intramuscular temperature. Fifteen volunteers participated in this study. The only significant difference in absolute intramuscular temperature was between ice and ace wrap and Game Ready® low. Ice and ace wrap had significantly greater change in quadriceps intramuscular temperature than Game Ready® no and low. Because it created the lowest intramuscular temperature and the greatest change in temperature, ice and ace wrap should be selected as a cooling modality over the Game Ready® device during the immediate care of injuries.