Massage and persistent pain

Persistent pain is complex. It’s impossible to claim that one particular approach or therapy is the best way to treat it. However, there is some evidence that massage therapy can be beneficial.

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  • Pain is said to be chronic or persistent if it lasts beyond the normal healing time of about three months
  • One in five Australians live with persistent pain
  • Persistent pain is one of the most common reasons that Australians seek massage therapy from a qualified massage therapist
  • The Kentucky Pain Research and Outcomes Study evaluated massage therapy impacts on pain, disability, and health-related quality of life for primary care patients with chronic low back pain. Participants improved on all outcomes at 12 and 24 weeks post intervention.
  • A 2016 systematic review published in Pain Medicine found that massage therapy may be beneficial for improving various patient-reported functional outcomes for populations experiencing pain and posited that massage therapy should be offered to patients for pain management.

References

Pain Australia Painful Facts

2016 AMT patient survey

Kentucky Pain Study

Pain populations Systematic Review

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