BACKGROUND Conventional medicine and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are merging into the broader field of "integrative medicine." Massage is no longer considered complementary or alternative in some conventional medical circles today. PURPOSE We aimed to determine the prevalence of massage use among children with cerebral palsy (CP) in the Pacific Northwest in the United States,...

OBJECTIVES To assess effects of a regular massage program on novice runners over a longer-term training period. PARTICIPANTS Twelve control and sixteen massage subjects took part in the study. SETTING Both groups participated in 10-week running preparation clinics. DESIGN An individualized massage treatment plan was developed for each massage group participant. Massage group subjects met ...

BACKGROUND Few studies have evaluated the effectiveness of massage for chronic low back pain. OBJECTIVE To compare the effectiveness of 2 types of massage and usual care for chronic back pain. DESIGN Parallel-group randomized, controlled trial. Randomization was computer-generated, with centralized allocation concealment. Participants were blinded to massage type but not to assignment to ma...

BACKGROUND Menopausal symptoms experienced by women vary widely, and while many women transition through menopause with manageable symptoms, others experience severe symptoms, which may impair their quality of life. OBJECTIVES A randomized clinical trial was conducted to determine the effect of aromatherapy massage on psychological symptoms during menopause. METHODS The study population com...

OBJECTIVE Stimulation of the nervous system plays an important role in brain function and psychomotor development of children. Massage can benefit premature infants, but has limitations. STUDY DESIGN The authors conducted a study to verify the direct effects of massage on amplitude-integrated electroencephalography (aEEG), oxygen saturation (SaO(2)), and pulse analyzed by color cerebral funct...

[Purpose] The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of calf muscle massage on ankle flexibility and balance. [Subjects and Methods] The study's subjects were 32 healthy college students, divided into two groups according to the massage methods applied. Both groups received five-minutes of massage to each calf, making a total of ten minutes. Massage group A received effleurage, tapoteme...

BACKGROUND The equivocal findings in the literature on efficacy of massage makes it difficult to assess the requirement for, or justify the use of, specialist massage personnel at major athletics events. However, the use of massage by athletes during training and competition remains popular. OBJECTIVES To quantify the amount of their time that physiotherapists devote to massage treatment at m...

OBJECTIVE Menopause is a significant event in most women's lives because it marks the end of a woman's natural reproductive life. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of aromatherapy massage on menopausal symptoms. METHODS A randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted at a menopausal clinic at a gynecology hospital in Tehran. The study population comprised 90 w...

E D I T O R I A L I want to open the Research section of this premier issue of the International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork: Research, Education, and Practice (IJTMB) with a provocative question. Does the massage therapy profession actually need re-search? To many, it may seem that it does not. Consider the following positions I have encountered that are sometimes held by propo...

Research investigating the efficacy of infant massage has largely focused on premature and low birth weight infants. The majority of investigations have neglected highly acute patients in academic neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The current study was developed with two aims: (Phase 1) to develop, implement and demonstrate the feasibility and safety of a parent-trained compassionate touch...