Thermal Stimulation
While there is a lot less research support for heating and cooling treatments, thermal treatments are recommended by many healthcare organizations like the National Sleep Foundation and Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation. Keep in mind thermal therapies (both hot and cold) affect all patients differently. Some people report heightened symptoms with heat, others report aggregated symptoms with cold, while many find relief with one or both. For suggested thermal treatment options scroll to the bottom of the page.
​
WARNING: Because patients with RLS often have unusual sensory reactions, it is extremely important that you are careful with heat-based therapies. While many patients may not feel that something is too hot or too cold, the dangers of contact with extreme temperatures are still present. In other words, if you have RLS, you may think something is warm when it is hot enough to cause burns so please be careful when applying thermal treatments.
Heating
There are a couple of reasons applying heat may relieve symptoms. First off, heat can stimulate your sensory receptors and block the transmission of pain/discomfort signals to the brain. Secondly, similar to tactile stimulation, heat increases blood flow to the area of discomfort which is suggested to relieve the RLS symptoms. Regardless of the mechanism, many RLS patients have reported symptom relief through heat therapies.
​
Cooling
The exact reason that cooling relieves RLS symptoms in many patients is not known. It is likely through temporary reduction of nerve activity that patients find relief. That being said, keep in mind cooling does reduce local blood flow, which may be why some patients report heightened symptoms with cold treatments.
Thermal Stimulation Options for
AT-HOME TREATMENT
​
PRODUCTS
There are a lot of heating and cooling methods that can be used to relieve RLS symptoms. Many of these methods include the use of products on the market. To give you an overview of some options, a few applicable products are listed below:
​
ThermaCare
Ultra Pain Relieving Cream Heating and Cooling
This cream works to desensitize nerves through four ingredients (camphor, menthol, capsaicin, & methyl salicylate). The ingredients are all counterirritants - they relieve pain through altering pain perception by irritating sensory nerve endings.
There is little information about the efficacy of cream-based thermal treatments but this was included to show there are different options that can be tried.
HeatWraps Heating
Heat cells are the core of this technology. The main ingredients of these heat cells are iron, oxygen, water, and salt, which react with air to produce heat (iron oxidation). The actual wrap is made of the cloth-like materials used in diapers and feminine hygiene products.
Use These wraps are single-use and disposable.
Cost There are different sizes for different application sites but the price ranges
from about $5 to $10.
Heat Level The wraps heat to about 104°F and last 8 hours. Because this is a relatively
mild heating technique, it may not be effective for patients with more
severe RLS.
IcyHot Heating & Cooling
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
Two Formulations
IcyHot has two formulations (regular and advanced) both of which come as a cream or patch. Both formulations are primarily intended for muscle/joint pain relief and may not be effective for severe RLS.
​
Creams
The ingredients in IcyHot are similar to the ThermaCare cream with active ingredients of menthol or a combination of menthol, camphor, and methyl salicylate (aspirin).
​
Patches
The patches are adhesive with methol as the active ingredient (5% methol in regular patches and 7.5% in advanced relief patches). Once applied the regular patches can be worn for 8 hours (up to 3x daily) while the advanced patches can be worn up to 12 hours (once per day).
Cureve Natural Therapies Heating or Cooling
Hot + Cold Therapy Gel Pack with Body Wrap $30
This gel pack comes with velcro straps to secure it to the area of discomfort. It does provide a heating and cooling option, but not simultaneously. To use, either microwave or keep in the freezer until cold.
​
Do note that a similar therapy can be achieved through normal heat or ice packs. However, the gel used in this pack is able to hold its temperature longer than a regular heat or ice pack meaning it will not need to be reheated or placed in the freezer as often. Its size is also an advantage (13" x 15") as one pack can cover a large area with 360-degree stimulation. That being said, we do want to acknowledge the main advantages of this product are more convenience than efficacy.
Thermal Blankets Heating
A heated blanket is a simple way to get heat to your area of discomfort. You may have one lying around and if not there are many available at a range of price points. An additional note, weighted blankets are also suggested to provide relief of RLS symptoms as a form of deep pressure therapy (DPT).
​
BATHS Heating or Cooling
Baths are a product free method for achieving thermal stimulation. With baths, the temperature can be easily controlled and personalized. However, we would recommend baths as a relaxation method more than a treatment method as it is temporary relief and cannot be utilized when sleeping. Either a very hot bath or ice bath is most likely to bring optimal relief.
​