I have arthritis in my neck and shoulder and use pain medicine in the morning and evening..............WHERE or HOW do I sign up to volunteer for this study??

Pick the right massage parlor and you can fix anything.

Chronic back and neck pain could be a link to a serious heart problem. Go in for a stress check and see if you are ok.

What is the over/under for how long it takes the medical industry to completely eviscerate this study. It is a given that if people are getting massages and feeling better they will take less drugs, have less pain management visits, and get less surgeries. The medical/pharmaceutical industry will not let that happen.

Cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching!

And, of course, even this can't work on all types of back problems. Do yourself a HUGE favor, and see your doctor first. If your problems are based on some type of an organic problem, no number of massages will be of assistance to you, and could end up being harmful, both by causing more damage to an already damaged area, and by allowing serious problems to be ignored.

For the record, I am NOT a medical professional, just a patient with three different types of arthritis.

It's important to let the massage therapist know if you also want the happy ending. The country I retired to, that is automatic unless you specifically say you don't want it. A full hour averages between $4.00 and $7.00. I had terrible back pains even with daily pain medicine and never got a good nights sleep until I retired and now get 2 back massages a week which includes hot packs. No more back pain or perscription pain medicine for 2 years now.

A weekly massage with a happy ending will relieve back pain and stress.

You can talk your pain away? That's a new one. The insurance industry will debunk that quickly because there's no money in it! ;)

Seriously, if that really worked, my sister's back pain would've vanished long ago because God knows the woman never shuts up! :)

Well duh. As far as I could tell, "usual care" was whatever they were doing before the massage. So, no surprise that a weekly massage made them feel better. I don't have low back pain, but I feel much better for several days after a massage. So, double duh.

The other thing is that massage is a passive treatment: the patients don't do anything. If they felt better after the massage and thus ended up being more active and doing some sort of a home exercise program as a result, they would have probably carried over the results into the next year. But they didn't and it didn't and that is the problem with passive treatments.

This is similar to chiropractic treatments: they help people, but if people just continue doing the same thing, they often get the same problem back and need more adjustments. In this aspect, I tend to be Republican since I just want to find a way to help myself and not depend upon others (massage, etc) or medications.

Thus, massage and chiropractics or other passive treatments need to be combined with a progressive exercise program for them to have the best long term effects. Otherwise it is just like taking a pill: you stop taking it or getting it and the problem returns. Let's use a little common sense here.

I have been following the reporting of this research since hearing of it Monday on NPR All Things Considered. I find it curious that the minimally trained Swedish Massage provider had a greater impact on client pain report, than did the specialist trained Massage Therapist.

It is interesting that many comments here have brought up application of massage in less than reputable settings [based on current state of accreditation, licensing and credentials for Professional Massage Therapy].

The researchers here used Professional Massage Therapist, to associate Medical research with sexual favors is insulting to both professions.

If you personally doubt the research, put it to the test! The study findings indicate that you only need find a Swedish Massage practitioner. There are Massage Therapist finder lists available through www.amtamassage.org and www.abmp.com; each of which are professional organizations for massage therapists who are certified by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork [www.ncbtmb.org]

Stephanie THE Massage Therapist

When the primary complaint is PAIN, the treatment of PAIN must be primary -Dorko

www.IhaveGotYourBack.com

The first question I have is.....

Have you found massage therapy beneficial for your acute or chronic back discomfort?

If massage therapy was free.....How many times per week would you get a massage?

Would it be convenient if you could have a massage done in about 10-15 minutes, at your desk or office, with your clothes on?

We help corporations all the time.

Call me personally for more info.

Sincerely,

Brion Weintzweig, LMT CEO and Founder, Able Hands Mobile Massage, Inc.

410-925-3713 www.MyMassageGuy.com

d.b.a. www.MyChairMassage.com

Has massage therapy been beneficial for your discomfort or promoting your sense of well being?

If massage therapy was free... How often would you get 1?

Would it be Convenient If mobile chair massage was available at your desk/office done in 10-15 minutes with your clothes on?

If you could relieve distracting minor muscular aches and pains.... what value would you as an employer put on the reduced productivity?

Call me directly for references since 1991.

Sincerely,

Brion Weintzweig, LMT CEO and Founder, Able Hands Mobile Massage, Inc.

410-925-3713 www.MyMassageGuy.com

d.b.a.

There is definetely healing power in the hands. Painkillers don't always work and when people start to learn this and make alternative choices then they will see.

As a rehab professional and licensed massage therapist, my questions about the study are: in the year after the study when they say that the beneficial effects of massage therapy had stopped, were the subjects continuing to receive massage or was the massage discontinued? What did people do during that year. Did they continue sitting on the couch in front of the TV, eating junk food, smoking their cigarettes, etc? The article doesn't give us any idea. We really need to know these things to be able to judge the study. The idea behind massage therapy is to achieve a balanced state with regularly scheduled massages which can then be decreased in frequency as the client resumes normal function and hopefully integrates diet, exercise and other lifestyle changes to help maintain their new balanced state. Massage therapy, chiropractic or even pain medications should not be construed as a stand-alone passive forever treatment but rather something to help break the cycle of pain so that the person can get out of bed and resume an active life. It does come down to individuals taking personal responsibility for their own well-being. Step 1: See your doctor and rule out structural defects that need to be corrected (ruptured discs, etc) and/or identify whether there is a chronic situation such as arthritis. Step 2: See your physical therapist for pain relief and training in posture, strengthening and spinal stabilization exercise. Be compliant with your therapist's recommendations. Step 3: See a massage therapist, chiropractor, acupuncturist, etc for help with pain if you are so inclined. Step 4: Stop smoking. Loose weight. Establish a routine exercise program that includes aerobics, strengthening and flexibility - get in a pool, take a brisk walk, take yoga classes.. the list is endless. Pick something and do it.

It is true there are a lot of complementary and alternative treatment options that are linked to decreasing chronic pain. As a student pharmacist, I believe these therapies are even more important due to the increasing rise of controlled substance prescription drug abuse. I’ve been doing a rotation at Natural Standard and was interested to learn that there is quite a bit of evidence out there that has been reviewed by qualified experts and determined to have a positive correlation to chronic pain improvement. This article quotes some of the studies, but www.NaturalStandard.com is a fantastic resource that has even more. In addition, it grades various treatment options for a various disease (such as chronic pain) by level of scientific evidence available on their effectiveness.

It is true there are a lot of complementary and alternative treatment options that are linked to decreasing chronic pain. As a student pharmacist, I believe these therapies are even more important due to the increasing rise of controlled substance prescription drug abuse. I’ve been doing a rotation at Natural Standard and was interested to learn that there is quite a bit of evidence out there that has been reviewed by qualified experts and determined to have a positive correlation to chronic pain improvement. This article quotes some of the studies, but www.NaturalStandard.com is a fantastic resource that has even more. In addition, it grades various treatment options for a various disease (such as chronic pain) by level of scientific evidence available on their effectiveness.