Cryotherapy 24-year-old female patient dies of cold chamber treatment

24-year-old woman dies of cold therapy
Cold therapies are used for various health problems, such as rheumatic diseases. In the US, a young woman has died in so-called cryotherapy. Her body was "frozen rock hard," relatives reported.

Cold therapy for the treatment of various diseases
Cold therapies are used to treat various diseases. The method also called cryotherapy can, for example, relieve pain in rheumatic diseases such as ankylosing spondylitis or help with skin diseases such as dermal pains and stubborn warts. The relatively new method is also used against muscle soreness or sleep disorders. In the US, the death of a 24-year-old woman in a cold room has made headlines. The patient's body was exposed to extremely low temperatures for a short time during this whole body cold therapy (GKKT). Her body was "frozen rock hard" according to relatives.

Death by too much cold. Image: magdal3na - fotolia

Temperatures of up to minus 110 degrees
As reported by the Swiss National News Agency (SDA), cryotherapy in the US is now being put to the test after the cold death of the young woman. In the United States, this method is currently a growth industry. Even some top athletes in the US use cold chambers. Star athletes like basketball player LeBron James rely on full-body cryotherapy as an alternative to ice packs and cold water baths. Patients only spend a short time, say one to three minutes, in the cold chamber and are exposed to temperatures as low as minus 110 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, they wear only swimming trunks or swimsuit, gloves and thick stockings. In the method, either cold air or nitrogen vapor is passed into the chamber.

Medically sound evidence is missing
Critics have been warning for a long time that there is no medically sound evidence for the effectiveness of cryotherapy. They call for further research to investigate the short and long-term effects. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, said the SDA said cold chamber therapy might give them "an adrenaline rush and a jolt," but there's no evidence that therapy is beneficial for a better one Health. In addition, it has not been proven that cold therapy reduces muscle damage after exercise. In addition, people would respond very differently to such minus temperatures and would need to be monitored accordingly.

Body was "frozen rock hard"
The young woman had apparently gone to the cold room in Las Vegas on October 20, after the end of business, to relieve some pain. Only the following day, the 24-year-old was discovered there by a colleague. As her uncle Albert Ake told local media, her body was "frozen rock hard." In the meantime, the authorities in the state of Nevada have announced that they will take a closer look at safety and other issues related to cryotherapy. It was said that the investigations should also help to revise the corresponding safety standards. (Ad)