The effects of different dressings on the skin temperature of the knee during cryotherapy

Abstract

Aim: To assess the effect of different dressing types on the efficiency of cryotherapy. Methods: Eighteen normal volunteers were divided equally into group 1—no dressing, group 2—thin adhesive dressing (tegaderm™), and group 3—bulky dressing (“wool and crepe”). Cryotherapy (cryocuff® and autochill®) was applied to one knee with the other knee serving as control. Skin temperature was measured bilaterally every 5 min for 2 h. Statistical analysis used temperature differences between control and test knees. Results: The mean baseline skin temperature differences were not statistically different among the three groups (p=0.96). The mean skin temperature decreases at 2 h measured, 17 °C (S.D.=0.8) in group 1, 17 °C (S.D.=1.9) in group 2, and 5 °C (S.D.=1.4) in group 3. “Wool and crepe” significantly impaired the cooling effect of cryotherapy (p<0.001). Tegaderm™ showed no significant effect (p=0.6). Conclusions: Wool and crepe dressings following knee surgery would prevent effective cryotherapy, whereas, thin adhesive dressings would not.