Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015; 2015: 930175.
A Randomized Controlled Trial on the Effectiveness of Court-Type Traditional Thai Massage versus Amitriptyline in Patients with Chronic Tension-Type Headache
1College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
2Research Center in Back, Neck, and Other Joint Pain and Human Performance, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand
3Bamnet Narong Hospital, Amphur Bamnet Narong, Chaiyaphum Province 36160, Thailand
4College of Allied Health Science, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Bangkok 10300, Thailand
Academic Editor: Arroyo-Morales Manuel
Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the court-type traditional Thai massage (CTTM) to treat patients with chronic tension-type headaches (CTTHs) comparing with amitriptyline taking. A randomized controlled trial was conducted. Sixty patients diagnosed with CTTH were equally divided into a treatment and a control group. The treatment group received a 45-minute course of CTTM twice per week lasting 4 weeks while the control group was prescribed 25 mg of amitriptyline once a day before bedtime lasting 4 weeks. Outcome measures were evaluated in week 2, week 4 and followed up in week 6 consisting of visual analog scale (VAS), tissue hardness, pressure pain threshold (PPT), and heart rate variability (HRV). The results demonstrated a significant decrease in VAS pain intensity for the CTTM group at different assessment time points while a significant difference occurred in within-group and between-group comparison (P < 0.05) for each evaluated measure. Moreover, the tissue hardness of the CTTM group was significantly lower than the control group at week 4 (P < 0.05). The PPT and HRV of the CTTM group were significantly increased (P < 0.05). CTTM could be an alternative therapy for treatment of patients with CTTHs.
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The efficacy of traditional Thai massage for the treatment of chronic pain: A systematic review.
- 1Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kean University, Thailand.
- 2Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
- 3Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
- 4Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kean University, Thailand. Electronic address: aparad@kku.ac.th.
Abstract
RATIONAL AND BACKGROUND:
Traditional Thai massage (TTM) is an alternative medicine treatment used for pain relief. The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic review of the research about the effects of TTM on pain intensity and other important outcomes in individuals with chronic pain.
METHODS:
We performed a systematic review of the controlled trials of the effects of TTM, using the keywords “Traditional Thai massage” or “Thai massage” with the keyword “Chronic pain.”
RESULTS:
Six research articles met the inclusion criteria. All of the studies found a pre- to post-treatment pain reductions, varying from 25% to 80% and was also associated with improvements in disability, perceived muscle tension, flexibility and anxiety.
SUMMARY:
The TTM benefits of pain reduction appear to maintain for up to 15 weeks. Additional research is needed to identify the moderators, mediators and to determine the long-term benefits of TTM relative to control conditions.
Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
KEYWORDS:
Chronic pain; Thai massage; Traditional Thai massage
- PMID:
- 25682523
- [PubMed – in process]
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