Massage & Bodywork

September/October 2013

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Focusing on the benefits of massage— as demonstrated through research literature—can be very educational, and even uplifting. that show adverse events after a massage. In a 2013 review article, 17 case reports and one case series demonstrated serious adverse postmassage events, including consequences such as bladder rupture, paraplegia, and stroke.1 Reading each article individually gives us a better understanding of the situations surrounding each case, as well as the clients' comorbidities and the treatments utilized so we may minimize the risk of injury to our own clients. These case reports help raise our awareness as to when side effects may occur with massage care and might help us ask better questions about risk factors or medications that could be associated with a negative consequence after massage. Within the studies, we might also look for patterns in the types of treatment rendered by massage therapists, including depth of touch, technique, and body parts included in the treatment, to avoid those in our own practice. Articles that include both positive and negative results will help us better understand the outcomes our clients may experience, which will only make us better practitioners. Collaborate with Health-Care Providers In medical school, physicians are trained in evidencebased medicine. (The massage therapy profession sometimes calls this evidence-informed practice.) This term was developed in the 1980s to describe a form of practice that incorporates research findings along with a clinician's expertise and the patient's desired form of care. In order for physicians to be able to utilize new findings, they are thoroughly trained in the critical appraisal of research articles. Therefore, massage therapists' efforts to collaborate with other healthcare professionals might be facilitated by providing research articles about massage therapy and bodywork. For example, if you were interested in collaborating with an obstetrician at a women's health clinic, you may want to share the recent study that demonstrated a reduction in the severity of labor pain through the use of massage.2 In this clinical trial, the experimental group received 30 minutes of massage to the lumbar area, whereas the control group received only a friendly conversation. The researchers found that at the end of the intervention, the Visual Analog Scale pain scores in the massage group averaged 52 millimeters (on a 100 millimeter line) and the control group averaged 72 millimeters, demonstrating a significantly lower amount of pain in the massage group. Medicine is driven by evidence, and bringing attention to articles that demonstrate the positive outcomes of massage therapy shows that the massage therapy profession is also focused on evidence. You can speak the language of other health-care providers and give them what they need to make an evidence-based decision to include massage therapy in their patients' care. In addition to individual providers who read and incorporate research findings for their patient care, some professional associations complete reviews of the literature in order to make it easier on their constituents. These evidence-based clinical-practice guidelines include the gold standard of care for the condition of interest based on the highest level of evidence. People who work in an integrative www.abmp.com. See what benefits await you. 53

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