Lowest Price of the Year Massage Therapy ClassificationsThere are many challenges to conducting valid and replicable research in the field of massage. One of the challenges in conducting research on massage therapy and other styles of bodywork is the lack of consistent terminology for describing the treatments given by massage therapists. A classification system could help to provide a consistent description of massage actions across a wide range of settings. A system similar to this was developed for research into the use of massage in the treatment of neck pain. A three level classification system:
Four categories described the principal goal of treatment (relaxation massage, clinical massage, movement re-education and energy work). Each principal goal of treatment could be met using a number of different styles, with each style consisting of a number of specific techniques. A total of 36 distinct techniques are used in this attempt at classification many are used in more than one massage style. Massage Therapy Taxonomy interventions.BackgroundMassage therapy is one of the oldest forms of medicine known to mankind and has been practiced worldwide since ancient times. Today, more than 80 different forms of massage have been identified, many developed in the last 30 years.Although massage is used for a variety of specific reasons (e.g., relaxation, comfort at the end of life, relieving pain, enhancing athletic performance), it is undertaken with the general goal of helping the body achieve or increase health and well-being. Touch given with the intention of healing, the common factor in many forms of massage, is believed by many therapist to have beneficial effects on tissue, body fluids and other systems of the body. Many massage therapists believe the healing power of touch, is a fundamental factor in their success in assisting their clients’ goals for health. With the burgeoning interest in complementary and alternative medicine in developed countries has come increased scientific interest in undertaking studies of related therapies, including massage. One consequence of their training is that many massage therapists do not believe that a "placebo" massage exists and thus researchers who wish to study massage within its own worldview would need to design studies with more appropriate controls than, for example, light touching. One of the challenges in conducting research in the field of massage and bodywork is the lack of consistent terminology for describing the treatments practitioners employ. This absence of a common language makes it difficult to ensure that different massage therapists are consistently describing what they are actually doing in treatment sessions and that the research methods for massage studies are reproducible. The lack of a common language is made worst by the numerous trademarked styles of massage that have been developed and taught by individuals who use unique terms to describe common component techniques. Some massage styles with different names may be essentially the same such as Structural Integration and Rolfing. However, some commonly used styles of massage therapy, including "deep tissue" and neuromuscular therapy, are not consistently defined. For example, some practitioners consider "deep tissue" work to be a synonym for neuromuscular therapy, while others consider "deep tissue" to mean the application of Swedish massage strokes with strong pressure, the application of acupressure, or the use of myofascial release techniques. Finally, the same technique or stroke is often given different names in different styles (e.g., deep effleurage, muscle sculpting, and longitudinal friction are the same), so massage therapists with different training may not realize when they are applying the same technique. Massage Therapy ClassificationAt the most general level, four principal goals of treatment can be described: 1) To promote relaxation and wellness (relaxation massage), 2) To address clinical concerns (clinical massage), 3) To enhance posture, movement and body awareness (movement re-education) 4) To balance and "move" subtle energy (energy work). Each of these goals can be accomplished using a number of different styles of massage, some of which are trademarked (e.g., Rolfing®). In a typical massage therapy session, more than one goal is addressed and when addressing the broad goals described above, more than one style of massage is used in a course of treatments and even within a single treatment session. Finally, a single style of massage may be used to address different goals. For example, Structural Integration, can be used to enhance athletic performance (relaxation massage), address a clinical condition such as scoliosis (clinical massage) or improve posture (movement re-education). Typically, massage students are taught a sample of styles in their basic massage training and then enhance their skills and learn other styles through continuing education workshops. Specific techniques, which refer to physical manipulations of the tissue, are the most fundamental and specific level of classification and are the building blocks of each of the styles. Styles, consisting of a number of distinct techniques, are commonly distinguished by a unique combination of these techniques, and by the underlying intent of when and why to apply the techniques. Specific techniques are commonly used in more than one style of massage and may be practiced by other professionals, such as osteopaths, physiotherapists, and movement educators. Principal goals, styles and techniques are discussed in more detail below. Principal Goals of Massage TherapyRelaxation MassageRelaxation massage is massage that is specifically given to relax the body and promote wellness. Relaxation massage has the intention of moving body fluids (such as lymph and blood), nourishing cells, removing wastes from cells, relaxing muscles and diminishing any pain. In the US, the most widely taught and practiced style of relaxation massage is Swedish massage , which employs five basic strokes: effleurage (gliding), petrissage (kneading and lifting), friction (moving the tissue layers underneath the skin), vibration, and percussion. Relaxation massage may include styles of massage that are more commonly used to address non-relaxation goals if such styles are applied with the intent to relax the body. For example, lymphatic drainage, commonly used as part of clinical massage (e.g., to reduce inflammation), is believed to be effective in stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system to promote relaxation. Clinical massageClinical massage involves more focused manipulation of the muscle and/or surrounding fascia and may address other systems in the body such as lymphatic, circulatory and nervous systems . Its intent is to relieve pain and restricted movement. Popular styles of clinical massage are myofascial trigger point therapy, myofascial release, neuromuscular therapy and Structural Integration or Rolfing®. They differ from relaxation massage because they include focused therapeutic goals (e.g., releasing muscle spasms, strengthening or stretching specific muscles and remodeling fascia). Clinical massage may include styles of massage often used for other principal goals. For example, Muscle Energy Technique, often used for enhancing ease of movement (movement re-education), can also be used as a clinical technique, for example, to reduce muscle spasms in a patient with whiplash.Movement re-educationMovement re-education emphasizes using movement to enhance posture, body awareness and movement . Movement re-education is generally intended to induce a sense of freedom, ease and lightness in the body. Some styles of movement re-education focus on active exercises to teach healthier ways of moving (e.g, Alexander technique, Trager®, Feldenkrais®). These styles may be used by non - massage therapists. Other styles focus on tablework in which the practitioner induces, assists or resists movement for a patient (e.g., Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation, Muscle Energy Technique, strain counterstrain). Some styles of massage commonly used for a different treatment goal, can be used to increase function and movement (e.g., sports massage). Energy WorkEnergy work (also called subtle energy techniques or body-mind therapies) are believed to "assist the flow of energy in the body" by employing very light touch or by holding the hands just above the skin. These include Reiki, Polarity and Therapeutic Touch as well as massage traditions deriving from Eastern cultures, such as acupressure, Amma, Shiatsu and Tuina. The intention of energy work is to move stagnant or blocked "energy" so it can circulate freely throughout the body. Two Clinical Massage Therapy StylesMyofascial Release and Neuromuscular TherapyMyofascial release is a style of manual therapy that Barnes defines as a "whole body, hands-on approach for the evaluation and treatment of the human structure. Its focus is to optimize the function of the fascial system." Component techniques of myofascial release includes the following techniques:
These are also components of craniosacral therapy.
Neuromuscular TherapyNeuromuscular therapy focuses on relieving local dysfunctions of the tissue, including trigger points, ischemia, inflammation, muscle hypertonia, and nerve impingement. It includes 15 component techniques: application of cold and heat, compression, cross-fiber friction, direct pressure, friction, J-stroke, manual stretching, percussion with stretch, scraping, stripping, and vibration focused on trigger points, and three types of resistive stretching: lengthening, contracting the agonist; lengthening the agonist, contracting the antagonist; and lengthening the agonist, contracting agonist and antagonist.
TechniquesTechniques are the "building blocks" of a massage treatment session. Techniques are listed in alphabetical order and include descriptions as well as examples of styles wherein these techniques have been commonly used. In some cases, techniques may be related, either because they are similar in how they are performed (e.g., rocking, jostling, shaking, vibration) or because they are components of a single style of massage (e.g., circular compression and rebound are techniques used in lymph drainage). Techniques may be used with different intentions that depend on the circumstances in which they are performed. For example, the technique of direct pressure may be used in trigger point therapy to release trigger points and in neuromuscular therapy to soften adhesions and make them more pliable. The technique of holding could be used
Finally, the technique of positional release is used in sports massage to restore normal muscle length and in Aston patterning to convey a sense of ease and comfort and body awareness. This taxonomy is a first step in enabling researchers and massage therapists to more clearly communicate about the nature of the massage treatments they are giving by using common language describing specific techniques that may have originally been learned as part of training in different styles of massage. Even though many challenging issues regarding design and conduct of studies of massage therapy remain a clear taxonomy would improve standardization of massage interventions and increase the ability of researchers to replicate studies in an effort to confirm findings. Taxonomy of Massage Therapy
Techniques, Mechanics and Uses
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