Polar Active Ice® Large Universal Therapy pad 12.5” x 22.5” with Two Detached Belts. Use only with The Polar #AIS Therapy System.

While planning for spinal fusion surgery, I started working out how I was going to manage every bit of my recovery without being a burden on my husband. One of the issues was ice packs at night. If I’m not mobile enough to get in and out of bed unaided, how will I be switching out ice packs every twenty minutes all night long? That's too much of an ask of a spouse. My dental hygienist recommended the "Ice Machine" they'd used for her son after his shoulder surgery. It had been prescribed by their physician and supplied by the durable medical equipment team at their hospital. I asked my surgeon and was told they don't supply them anymore. Though the hygienist offered to loan it to me, I don't feel like I know her well enough to take her up on her offer. (It might have been one of those spontaneous offers that wasn't actually an offer, you know what I mean?) So, I was really glad to find the Polar Active Ice system here on Amazon. Since I did not get a prescription for this kit, I wasn't able to put it through insurance, but it's not outrageously expensive, and it wasn't a waste of money so I'm happy. This will not be one of those pieces of hardware you buy, use for a few weeks, and forget. Between my husband and I, we will use this again. The pre-surgery plan was that my husband would help me get positioned in bed with the cold pack on my surgical site, I’d set the timer for cold on/cold off durations, set the temperature from 1 (cold) - 4 (coldest), and we'd both sleep through the night. Post-surgery experience was more nuanced. The pad that comes with this back/hip kit has a long elastic attached and the idea is that you put the pad on the incision, wrap the elastic around the patient, and Velcro it in place. I think that configuration likely works well if the patient is mobile – which I was not early on -- or is using it during the daytime -- which was not. (I'm actually restricted from Bending, Lifting, Twisting, Pushing or Pulling for another month.) At first, we couldn't figure out how to set it up so I could sleep with the pad comfortably because the pad is not giant and the fill-hose is well, right there (where the fill-hose belongs but kind of in the way). I ordered up the larger pad accessory. It’s a lot bigger than I mentally processed (it covers my entire torso laying down), but it swapped right in with this kit and worked very well early on after the operation when everything hurt and positioning myself exactly on the smaller back pad was very painful. When I started to feel a bit feverish, the larger pad helped bring my temperature down without taking more meds. Now that I'm more mobile, I have been able to switch back to the pad that came with this kit at night and that's been working well. I lay the pad down on the bed and extend the strap up under my pillow. I figured out where to sit on the bed so I can log-roll right onto the pad and the weight of my body holds it in place. I've never tossed or turned much at night, so this works well for me. The pump is audible, but not loud -- like white noise, unnoticeable and somewhat soothing while I'm slowing down for the night and sleeping. Recommendation to users is to put a towel between you and the pad so you don't "burn" your skin and cover the hose with that towel as well. You will forget that it gets really cold, too. Another recommendation from others that I will repeat is to use frozen bottles of water inside the cooler box because they last longer and are easier to change out than ice alone. Peel the labels off so they don't accidently come unglued and plug up the pump. I've been drinking a lot of PowerAide Zero in recovery and those bottles work well - the labels come right off and they nest with each other nicely. We actually have been able to moderate the cold intensity by reducing the number of frozen water bottles in the box. With a full box of frozen water bottles, even the lowest setting is pretty darn cold. BTW, I have been recommending this kit to everybody. If you see a spike in sales from the metro Detroit area, you can credit me a commission. ;-) A design suggestion, I would create a hose connection on the edge of the cooler, rather than as it is currently a couple of feet along a hose that protrudes from the cooler. A connection at the cooler box would make it more storable -- all the parts could be rolled up and shut inside the cooler box. Otherwise, THANK YOU for a great product that is making my recovery from a rather scary surgery more bearable.

The large polar ice therapy pad works amazingly well and has been extremely helpful post surgery for reducing swelling. I have had my polar ice therapy machine for years and have used it for a myriad of things from minor swelling from twists and sprains to lower back pain to post surgery needs. I definitely recommend the polar ice machine and especially this large therapy pad attachment as it is very versatile..

Works well. Relieves pain well with machine. Easy to put on

My husband had shoulder replacement surgery and we are so thankful to have purchased the Shoulder and Upper Arm Therapy pad to use with the Polar Active Ice machine (9 quart). This machine has been a life saver! We used frozen water bottles instead of ice. We love the timer feature, especially overnight. I was also very impressed with the quick and helpful response from the company when I had questions.

Works well. Cold distributed evenly

We borrowed the cooling system who had foot surgery. We needed it for a knee replacement so ordered the knee wrap. This works well with the system and takes the hassle out of regular icing.

My wife recently had hip replacement surgery. We had the original Polar machine for earlier shoulder surgery. This pad clicked right on and has really helped with the recovery from the surgery. It allows for so much more inflammation relief than an ice pack.

Had an issue with the length of tube that the manufacturer replaced for free promptly!!!