By DR. MARK KESTNER

I wanted to get this column published before you headed out for your summer vacation. Unfortunately, vacation is a time when the unforeseen happens. Over the past 20 years I have heard a lot of explanations of vacation related injuries that ended with the line, “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

Unfortunately, many readers will experience a mishap while on vacation. It may be a minor slip or strain that results in a few days of achy joints or something more serious. Vacation is a lousy time to be injured.

One of the most frequent complaints of travelers is low back pain. Other top 10 problems include headache, neck pain and injuries to shoulders, knees, elbows and ankles. Digestive problems such as diarrhea or constipation, along with sunburn, bruises, cuts or lacerations round out the list.

A simple traveler’s first aid kit will be worth many times the cost if a need arises. You can purchase a first aid kit ready-made for traveling, or spend a little bit of time and create your own. The one you make yourself is likely to be more useful, cost less money and be more applicable to you and your fellow travelers. Watch for a future column about the best items to include.

Today’s column is about a very simple suggestion that you may use on more than one occasion. It is about a handy little item that costs less than a dollar that can save a vacation.

One of the things that you can do to treat most of the top-10 complaints listed above is to apply a cold pack. Cold therapy helps soothe neck and back pain, headache, joint injuries and many other ailments.

In any case involving an acute injury that might result in swelling, application of a cold pack as early as possible is usually a good idea. Have you ever noticed that when a player is injured during a sporting event, a trainer will begin applying ice within minutes? That is to reduce the amount of post-injury swelling.

The same rule applies to bruises, mild scrapes and cuts. Even if you are a tough guy or gal, being sensible and applying cold therapy as quickly as possible will result in the injury being less severe than if it is ignored.

Vacation is a time when injury is more likely, and traveling means that you may not have the typical remedies that you may have at home. Ideally, you would have a pre-chilled commercial gel pack ready for emergencies. But since you are away from home, you probably will not be so well prepared. Here are two very useful tips to help get cold therapy applied to an injury as quickly as possible.

First, if you happen to be in a condo or hotel or have an ice machine nearby, one of the easiest things to do is put crushed ice in a towel and fold the towel over and tie the corners. You have just made an excellent ice pack. The towel will delay the freezing cold of the ice just long enough for the skin to gradually adjust to the changing temperature. The ice will melt, and the cold water will be absorbed by the towel and the resulting cold will be just right for applying to the injured area.

If you are traveling in a car or cannot find a towel and crushed ice, you may find the eighty-seven cent solution to be a handy option. For less than a dollar, you can stop at any grocery store, convenience mart, or even many gas stations and pick up a package of frozen peas. Frozen peas make a great emergency cold pack. For many injuries they are just the right size, and as they thaw they cool the injury without making a mess. You can also use frozen corn or any other similar product that will conform to the tissue being treated.

As you pack for your vacation, remember to pack any medication that you normally take. Next week, I’ll list several handy items that can prove very useful in traveling emergencies.

Dr. Mark Kestner
mkestner@DrKestner.com