Massage relieves chronic back pain
Despite controversies, a new research suggests that massage therapy is an effective method in alleviating the symptoms of chronic low back pain.
Group Health Research Institute researchers studied the effectiveness of massage in 401 patients with chronic low back pain with no definite cause.
The participants were assigned to three different groups, one received a full-body relaxation massage, the other underwent specifically targeted deep tissue massage, and the third received usual care assigned for chronic low back pain including medication and physical therapy.
After 10 weeks, significantly reduction in pain or completely relief was noted in two-thirds of the patients who had received either type of weekly massage, while only one third of those receiving the traditional remedies experienced comparable relief, researchers wrote in the in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
"We found that patients receiving massage were twice as likely as those receiving usual care to report significant improvements in both their pain and function," said lead author, Daniel Cherkin.
While the mechanism through which massage alleviates low back pain remains unclear, scientists believe the technique may help relax spastic muscles, stimulate tissue locally or cause a more generalized central nervous system response. The other possibility is that spending time in a relaxing environment or being touched by a sympathetic therapist may help improve the symptoms.
Based on their findings, researchers concluded that massage has few adverse effects and is a reasonable and inexpensive treatment for low back pain.
"We tested this on people who had not been getting better from the usual medical approaches," Cherkin said. "If you’ve tried other things and you’re not getting adequate relief, then massage is a reasonable thing to try."
Source: presstv.ir
