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R
E S E A R C H
Soft-tissue Massage
for Shoulder Pain
Soft-tissue massage improved
range of motion, reduced pain and improved function in people with
shoulder pain, according to a research study.
"A
trial into the effectiveness of soft tissue massage in the treatment
of shoulder pain" was conducted by staff at Auburn Hospital
and Concord Repatriation General Hospital in Sydney, Australia.
Twenty-nine
subjects who had been referred to the Concord hospital for management
of shoulder pain participated in the study. Their medical diagnoses
varied, but impingement, rotator-cuff tear and unspecified shoulder
pain were the most common diagnoses.
Fourteen
of the participants were randomly assigned to the control group,
where they were placed on a waiting list for massage and received
no treatment for two weeks.
Fifteen of the participants were randomly
assigned to the massage group, where they received six sessions of
soft-tissue massage around the shoulder for two weeks. The massage
included the lateral border of the scapula, in full shoulder flexion;
posterior deltoid, at end-of-range horizontal flexion; anterior deltoid,
at end-of-range hand-behind-back; and pectoralis major, in the stretch
position. Each session lasted 15-20 minutes.
Active
range of motion was evaluated for flexion, abduction and hand-behind-back
movements before and after the study. Pain was assessed on the Short
Form McGill Pain Questionnaire, and functional ability was assessed
with the Patient Specific Functional Disability Measure, both before
and after the study period.
Subjects
in the control group showed no significant improvements from the
beginning to the end of the two-week period. Subjects in the massage
group showed significant improvements in all measures, with a mean
improvement of 22.6 degrees in flexion; 42.2 degrees in abduction;
and the ability to reach a mean of 11 centimeters further up the
back. Subjects in the massage group also reported decreased pain
and improved function.
"This
randomized, controlled trial has shown that soft tissue massage
around the shoulder in subjects with shoulder pain of local mechanical
origin produces significantly greater improvements in pain, function
and range of motion than does no treatment over a two-week period,"
state the study’s authors.
"The
fact that these patients improved with such a wide range of diagnoses
points to the potential generalisability of the effects of this
massage in patients with shoulder pain of local mechanical origin."
- Source: Auburn
Hospital and Concord Repatriation General Hospital in Sydney, Australia.
Authors: Paul A. van den Dolder and David L. Roberts. Originally
published in the Australian
Journal of Physiotherapy 2003, Vol. 49, pp. 183-188.
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