What is the recommended treatment time for an ice pack protocol described as 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off?

• A. 60 minutes
• B. 30-40 minutes
• C. 10-20 minutes
• D. 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off

Answer: (C)

Cold therapy should be applied for a limited time during each exposure. The safe, effective rule is to keep the ice on for about 10 to 20 minutes at a time. The rest period (off) in a cycle is there to allow rewarming and prevent tissue damage, so it doesn’t count toward the on-time. You can run multiple cycles if needed, but each individual application should stay within the 10–20 minute window. Longer single exposures increase risk of tissue injury, which is why options that describe longer total times aren’t the best match. Hence, 10–20 minutes is the recommended treatment time.