COLD, HARD FACTS
Find out what our experts have to say about cryotherapy
Adam's Journal
Dear Dr. Prescott: What is cryotherapy? And what the heck was NFL star Antonio Brown trying to accomplish with cryotherapy on his feet? Isn't an old-school ice bath good enough?
— Chris Lee, Oklahoma City
Dr. Prescott Prescribes
Cryotherapy began as a medical practice that involves applying small amounts of liquid nitrogen to a specific part of the body to destroy abnormal tissue, like cancer or warts. More recently, the concept has expanded to immersing the entire body in chambers cooled far below zero with liquid nitrogen for a variety of purported benefits.
Celebrity athletes have been among cryotherapy's biggest proponents, standing in tanks with temperatures as low as minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit to reduce muscle soreness and swelling and to speed recovery. But there is little science to support its use.
A 2015 review looked at four different trials and found insufficient evidence to support the use of whole-body cryotherapy for muscle soreness. The Food and Drug Administration doesn't recognize any medical benefits from the practice and has not certified cryotherapy chambers to treat anything at all.
Although I don't know the details of Antonio Brown's recent mishap, he likely suffered frostbitten feet while standing in a cryotherapy chamber. Olympic sprinter Justin Gatlin reported a similar injury caused by wearing sweaty socks in one of the tanks. Ditto for a Texas woman who sued over third-degree burns she says were caused by wet clothing during the treatment.
Of course, they all fared better than a Nevada woman who died in a cryotherapy chamber, apparently a victim of nitrogen suffocation.
As you've probably guessed, I'm not a big fan. I don't see any proven benefits, only potential danger.
For cold therapy, an oldfashioned ice bath is relatively risk-free. Still, the upside is pretty limited.
In a 2007 study, runners who used ice baths after vigorous exercise reported less soreness a few days later than those who didn't soak. But the bath didn't lower levels of creatine kinase, a chemical that signals muscle damage.
In other words, the runners may have felt better, but their muscles showed no benefit. So, unless you love the cold, I'd probably skip the bath, too.