A Chat with Colin Edgar, MD of CET Ltd, Responsible For Core TX Palm Cooling Technology

The CoreTx GO Palm Cooling device is our latest technological development. We (CET) are the world-leading cold hydrotherapy experts, having dominated the elite sports sector in Europe & the Middle East for over a decade with our CryoSpa Ice Baths, and now we have developed a new performance enhancing palm cooling device, based on Stanford University research.

CET are the leading manufacturers of cold therapy solutions to elite sports worldwide, including: Team GB, The FA, Manchester United, Manchester City, AC Milan, Wimbledon (Tennis) and Bayern Munich as well as many installations for individual players in their homes.
 
 

 

How did you come up with the idea for the CoreTx GO? And what do you think makes CoreTx unique?

 
I had been aware of the concept of palm cooling for some time, in particular the work of Professor Craig Heller and Dennis Grahn at Stanford. About 3 years ago I was at Stanford for a short introduction to Design Thinking, and met with Dr Heller, a world authority on the impact of extreme temperatures on the human physiology.

One research project involved how to combat heat stress in challenging environments; think of soldiers with all their protective gear in desert conditions or fire fighters battling a burning building. The outcome of this research for over a decade was the development of the world’s first palm cooling device, commonly called the Stanford Glove. Further research indicated that palm cooling significantly increased work capacity, meaning that it had a strength & conditioning application. For context, the performance enhancements are on a par with the use of steroids.

A few months later I was in Stockholm installing a couple of CryoSpa Sport Ice Baths for Hammarby Football Club. In conversation with the Head Sports Scientist, it came to light that he had a Stanford Glove and had been using it for half time recovery. They said in principle it was great, but it took too long to take effect and he asked me if I could develop something faster acting.

I then flew from Stockholm to Munich and by the time I had landed I had a fully costed palm cooling device designed. The drawings I did on the flight formed the basis of the patent application, which was granted in December last year. The secret to making it faster was that we aimed a jet of cold water at the palm of the hand thereby cooling by convection, which is much more effective than cooling by conduction alone. Hammarby FC then loaned us their Stanford Glove so we were able to do comparative tests and prove ours really was better.

Due to the outbreak of Covid everything took longer than normal so we didn’t launch the new website until Spring.
 

How has CoreTx evolved over the last couple of years?

 
We received an interesting enquiry from a Doctor at Harvard University – he’s the gymnastics and wrestling coach. In conversation with him we determined that because his athletes were taping their fingers and chalking their hands they had to keep their hands dry. A short while later we got a call from the Head Osteopath for INEOS Grenadiers (formerly Team Sky), one of the leading professional cycling teams, having won the Tour de France in 7 of the previous 10 years.

They were at La Vuelta, which is effectively the Spanish Tour De France, and were suffering with the 40° heat. They were looking for a cooling modality that could be used during the coach journey at the end of each stage. All the riders will travel in the coach to a hotel near to the start of the next day’s stage and that coach journey could be one hour or even two hours long.

So we went back to the drawing board and the portable CoreTx GO was developed. The advantage of the CoreTx GO is that both palms can be cooled at the same time and two riders could use it simultaneously. This contrasts with the Stanford Glove which is for one person and one palm only. The other big advantage is that the CoreTx GO uses a chiller so the temperature can be digitally controlled while the Stanford Glove used ice and water.
 

What can we hope to see from CoreTx in the future?

 
We are hoping to have the CoreTx GO palm cooling device utilised in most professional sports settings, where it can have incredible benefits to performance. We also expect the elite and high-calibre performance gyms and studios to adopt this technology quickly, as they continue to try to offer their members the latest technology and performance enhancing products.

We have also had great success integrating the CoreTx GO with CrossFit 2012, a gym just outside London, and the results their members have seen are incredible. Members have reported 50% to 100% improvements in only 4 to 6 sessions. We expect other facilities to realise the benefits of palm cooling and begin to integrate it into their offering, as it is proven to help not only improve athletic performance, but also significantly enhance weight loss and programme adherence in obese populations.