A knee may be 'iced' to limit inflammation and swelling.
Technique of icing
Moisten a towel and wrap it around some ice from the refrigerator. Remember that ice from the freezer is FAR colder than from the refrigerator so if you use freezer ice you need to crush it and use a good thick towel. Better is a bag of frozen peas. Ice the limb for about 15 minutes only. Repeat as needed but don't leave the ice on so long that the skin burns!
FORUM DISCUSSIONS
Should we be icing or heating.... or both?
Does anyone else's knee HURT after icing?
CLINICAL PUBLICATIONS
Effects of Topical Icing on Inflammation, Angiogenesis, Revascularization, and Myofiber Regeneration in Skeletal Muscle Following Contusion Injury. Singh DP, Lonbani ZB, Woodruff MA, Parker TJ, Steck R and Peake JM. Front Physiol. 2017; 8: 93.
Quadriceps Muscle Function After Rehabilitation With Cryotherapy in Patients With Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction. Hart JM, Kuenze CM, Diduch DR and Ingersoll CD. J Athl Train. 2014 Nov-Dec; 49(6): 733–739.