A recent study published in JAMA Network Open reviews evidence to determine whether massages effectively relieve pain. Study: Use of massage therapy for pain, 2018-2023. Image Credit: baranq / Shutterstock.
com An overview of massage therapy Complementary and integrative medicine is a welcome alternative for many individuals who do not experience relief through or oppose the principles of modern medicine. Massage, for example, is widely used in complementary medicine and involves manually evaluating and manipulating soft tissues on the body's surface to provide therapeutic results. These soft tissues include skin, muscle, ligaments and tendons, fascia, and structures within these tissues.
Massage therapy should be performed by trained personnel who may utilize multiple techniques performed in various styles over different durations. Despite its widespread popularity and historical use, little evidence confirming the efficacy of massage therapy in managing physical pain exists. About the study The current study is an evidence map, a type of systematic review.
Its objective is to identify available evidence examining the efficacy of massage in pain treatment, identify knowledge gaps, and present this information in an easily understandable format. This evidence map was requested by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to update an earlier review covering systematic reviews through 2018. The current review included 17 of 129 earlier reviews of massage therapy for.