A Randomized Clinical Trial of the Treatment Effects of Massage Compared to Relaxation Tape Recordings on Diffuse Long-Term Pain

• Published in: Psychotherapy and psychosomatics 2004-01, Vol.73 (1), p.17-24
• Main Authors: Hasson, Dan, Arnetz, Bengt, Jelveus, Lena, Edelstam, Bo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Female; Humans; Male; Massage; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Pain Management; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Regular Article; Relaxation Therapy; Relaxation. Biofeedback. Hypnosis. Selfregulation. Meditation; Severity of Illness Index; Treatment Outcome; Treatments
• ISSN: 0033-3190; 1423-0348
• DOI: 10.1159/000074436

Background: Long-term musculoskeletal pain is a common problem in primary health care settings that is difficult to treat. Two common treatments are mental relaxation and massage. Scientific studies show contradictory results. Furthermore, many studies lack long-term follow-up even though it is a chronic disorder. The purpose of this randomized clinical trial was to assess possible effects of massage as compared to listening to relaxation tapes in conditions of ‘diffuse’ and long-term musculoskeletal pain. Methods: 129 patients from primary health care suffering from long-term musculoskeletal pain were randomized to either a massage or mental relaxation group, and assessed before, during and after treatment. Results: During treatment there was a significant improvement in the three main outcome measures: self-rated health, mental energy, and muscle pain only in the massage group as compared to the relaxation group. However, at the 3-month post-treatment follow-up, there was a significant worsening in the outcome measures (time × group effect p < 0.05) back to initial rating levels in the massage group as compared to no changes in the relaxation group. Conclusion: Massage, but not mental relaxation, is beneficial in attenuating diffuse musculoskeletal symptoms. Beneficial effects were registered only during treatment. This lack of long-term benefits could be due to the short treatment period or treatments such as these do not address the underlying causes of pain. Future studies of long-term pain should include longer treatment periods and post-treatment follow-up. It might also be worthwhile assessing the long-term benefits from booster treatment after the initial intense treatment period.