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Massage Therapy May Reduce Chronic Tension Headache
By Steven Reinberg |
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| NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Oct 11 - Massage therapy directed
to the neck and shoulder muscles can reduce the frequency
and duration of tension headaches, researchers report
in the October issue of the American Journal of Public
Health.
"The results of our study strongly support the
efficacy of specific manual intervention to decrease
the symptomatology associated with non-migraine headache,"
lead author Christopher Quinn told Reuters Health. |
| "Specificity of the treatment was critical in the
successful outcomes that we reported. Our treatment protocol
was very specific and included the manipulation of myofascial
trigger points, post-isometric stretching techniques,
and massage strokes applied to named musculature,"
he added.
Dr. Quinn and colleagues from the Boulder College of
Massage Therapy, Colorado, evaluated four patients with
chronic tension headache. Over 4 weeks, the researchers
recorded the frequency, duration and intensity of headaches.
During the next 4 weeks, patients received 30 minutes
of massage therapy twice a week. Dr. Quinn's group then
compared the results of massage therapy with baseline
headache frequency, duration and intensity.
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| Massage therapy significantly reduced the frequency
of headaches from the first week of therapy through to
the end of the trial (p = 0.009). Mean headache frequency
was reduced from 6.8 at baseline to 2.0 during massage
therapy, they report.
The duration of headaches also tended to decrease during
the massage phase, from a mean of 8.0 hours at baseline
to 4.3 hours during treatment, but this difference was
not statistically significant. Headache intensity was
not affected by massage therapy, Dr. Quinn's team found.
Dr. Quinn noted that "results from a second portion
of this study, yet to be submitted for publication,
show statistically significant improvements in psychological
parameters associated with chronic pain--specifically,
depression, anxiety, and somatization." |
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| "Massage therapy, and other manual medicine modalities,
are too often used as the 'last resort' on the treatment
continuum," he said. "Once a diagnosis is definitively
established, the use of such conservative treatments should
be a front line consideration--particularly in consideration
of the risk/benefit ratio. Massage therapy is also cost-effective;
we achieved our published results with only 4 total hours
of treatment over a 1-month period," Dr. Quinn said.
Am J Public Health 2002;92:1657-1661. |
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(The above information
has been provided courtesy of www.fmscommunity.org ) |
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Janice McCord is a registered
massage therapist, practicing at the Bellesmere Massage
Therapy Clinic in Scarborough. The clinic specializes
in therapeutic treatments, and all therapists are registered.
For further information, contact the clinic at (416)
431-9791 |
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