In a recent study reported on in the US National Library of Medicine, an experiment was done on 72 test cases which reveal how Thai Massage had excellent results in reducing headache intensity and increasing the pressure pain threshold (PPT) of people suffering from chronic headaches. Some of the details are as follows:
- Everyone in the group had been diagnosed with chronic or migraine headaches
- Age range of 20-50 years old
- To qualify the person had to have been experiencing headaches for at least the previous three months for at least fifteen days a month and at least two headaches a week
- The subjects received nine 30-minute sessions of Thai Massage throughout a three week intervention period. The routine consisted of 25 minutes of localized Thai Massage for the head, neck and shoulders and five minutes of passive stretching.
The study measured each person’s pain threshold, the intensity, frequency and duration of headaches at four distinct times; before the three week treatment period, right after, three weeks later and nine weeks later. The results demonstrated that there was a significant increase in each person’s pain threshold and a significant decrease in headache frequency and intensity at each post-intervention assessment. As such the authors of the study conclude that these results indicate that Thai Massage can improve both pain thresholds and headache intensity during both the short-term of treatment and during the relatively long-term of post-treatment. (And it can) be promoted as an alternative treatment for patients with [chronic tension-type headaches] and migraines.” These results were first reported in Massage Magazine which is the leading massage publication for the entire massage industry.