Patent ID: 7833179

Claim:
A method of treating hypothermia in a human body by applying a pulsating pressure to a local region of that body comprising the steps of: providing a pressure chamber; introducing a limb in to the pressure chamber such that it is sealed from external conditions; filling or partially filling the pressure chamber with a liquid; immersing the limb in the liquid so that it is substantially surrounded by and in contact with the liquid; circulating the liquid via a heat exchanger unit to heat the liquid to a temperature of 40° C. or above; and generating pulses of negative pressure within the chamber of between −20 mmHg and −80 mmHg (−2.7 kPa and −10.7 kPa), each pulse of negative pressure being generated for between 5 and 15 seconds and released for an interval of between 5 and 10 seconds the pulses of negative pressure and thermal energy in the liquid being transmitted simultaneously to the limb of the patient via the direct contact with the liquid.