Massage therapy

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Overview

In massage therapy, a massage therapist rubs and kneads the soft tissues of your body. The soft tissues include muscle, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments and skin. The massage therapist varies the amount of pressure and movement.

Massage is part of integrative medicine. Medical centers often offer it with standard treatment. It can be used for a wide range of medical conditions.

Studies of massage benefits have found massage can:

  • Help reduce stress.
  • Lessen pain and muscle tightness.
  • Increase relaxation.
  • Improve the work of the immune system.

At Mayo Clinic, medical providers may recommend massage therapy to help people cope with the pain and stress of conditions such as cancer, heart disease, stomach problems or fibromyalgia.

Massage Therapy at Mayo Clinic

By Mayo Clinic Staff

Massage therapy care at Mayo Clinic

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Doctors & Departments
March 03, 2023
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  1. Massage therapy: What you need to know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/massage-therapy-what-you-need-to-know. Accessed Jan. 5, 2021.
  2. AskMayoExpert. Massage therapy. Mayo Clinic; 2019.
  3. Rodgers NJ, et al. A decade of building massage therapy services at an academic medical center as part of a healing enhancement program. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 2015; doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2015.07.004.
  4. Dion LJ, et al. Development of a hospital-based massage therapy course at an academic medical center. International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. 2015; doi:10.3822/ijtmb.v8i1.249.
  5. Clark SD, et al. Effect of integrative medicine services on pain for hospitalized patients at an academic health center. Explore. 2019; doi:10.1016/j.explore.2018.07.006.
  6. Zhihong L, et al. Benefits of hand massage on anxiety in preoperative outpatient: A quasi-experimental study with pre- and post-tests. Explore. 2020; doi:10.1016/j.explore.2020.08.016.
  7. Brown AY. Allscripts EPSi. Mayo Clinic. Jan. 6, 2021.
  8. Liu C, et al. The effect of massage therapy on pain after surgery: A comprehensive meta-analysis. Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 2022; doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2022.102892.

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