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April 23, 2004

Massage Helps Back Pain

It's always nice to have a major publication tout the benefits of massage such as Newsweek's article about back pain.

Is massage better for you than surgery? As millions of Americans seek relief from this ancient ailment, doctors are trying simpler, less invasive ways to end the agony.

Massage has seen an increasing number of addicted patients, too, and research shows it can help knead out persistent pain; one study even found that patients took fewer medications during treatment. Steven Smith, a physical therapist at the Schuldt Performance Center in Deerfield, Ill., uses massage on back-pain sufferers to loosen up tight muscles and increase blood flow. It's not exactly a spa-like experience—Smith uses an electrical vibrator to distract patients from the pain of his fingers pushing into their muscles. "You've got to get in there deep to break those spasms," he says.

Posted by linda at April 23, 2004 9:03 AM