ReviewCurrent pain and headache reports2014
Painful connections: densification versus fibrosis of fascia.
Review in Current pain and headache reports, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 88 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
88 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 177 citations in OpenAlex.
- Differences in the Thoracolumbar Fascia Between Low Back Pain Patients and Healthy Individuals: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.Sports medicine - open · 2026Pooled it
- Ultrasound Imaging of Thoracolumbar Fascia: A Systematic Review.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2024Pooled it
- Rectus Femoris Neuromechanical Responses to Exercise-Induced 3% Body Mass Loss by Baseline Hydration Status: A Randomized Group Comparison.Nutrients · 2026Trial
- Effects of percussive massage therapy on fascia echo intensity and fascia thickness in firefighters with chronic non-specific low back pain: a randomized controlled trial.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2024Trial
- Acute Effects of Percussive Massage Therapy on Thoracolumbar Fascia Thickness and Ultrasound Echo Intensity in Healthy Male Individuals: A Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Trial
- Thoracolumbar fascia mobility and chronic low back pain: Phase 2 of a pilot and feasibility study including multimodal chiropractic care.Chiropractic & manual therapies · 2022Trial
- Effect of warm-up and muscle fatiguing exercise on knee joint sounds in motion by vibroarthrography: A randomized crossover trial.PloS one · 2021Trial
- Inter and Intra Operator Reliability of Motor and Palpation Evaluation in Fascial Manipulation in individuals with coxarthrosis.The Journal of manual & manipulative therapy · 2020Trial
- Reduced lumbar myofascial mobility in chronic low back pain quantified using MR elastography-based slip interface imaging.European radiology experimental · 2026Article
- Clinical Relevance of Oxidative Imbalance in Patients with Temporomandibular Disorder-Myofascial Pain with Referral: An Exploratory Case-Control Study.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Effect of percussive massage treatment and static stretching on muscle tone, stiffness, and strength recovery after exercise-induced muscle fatigue: A randomized controlled study.Sports medicine and health science · 2026Article
- Immediate Effects of Fascial Manipulation on Pain in Patients with Myofascial Densification and Central Sensitization: A Case Series.International journal of therapeutic massage & bodywork · 2026Article
- Thoracolumbar fascia ultrasound and elastography biomarkers in low back pain: a systematic review of associations and responsiveness to intervention.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2026Review
- Common Fascial Abnormalities in Five Thumb Pain Conditions: A Fifteen-Point Ultrasound-Guided Fascia Hydrorelease Clinical Protocol.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- The Fascial Capacitor Model: A Biophysical Hypothesis for the Origin of the Local Twitch Response Within Stacking Fascia.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Local Twitches During Ultrasound-Guided Fascial Hydrorelease Occur Within Stacking Fascia: A Retrospective Analysis of a Large Video Archive.Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- A Conceptual Fascial Memory Reset Hypothesis: Mechanobiological Insights into Stacking Fascia as an Ultrasound-Visible Structural Phenotype and the Potential Role of Fascial Hydrorelease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- MASSAG model: Towards an integrative neuroscience framework linking emotional trauma, pain, and mechanisms of force-based manipulations.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2026Review
- A Time-Efficient and Reproducible Rat Model of Myofascial Pain Syndrome-Like Phenotypes Induced by Repeated Mechanical Impact and Eccentric Exercise.Journal of pain research · 2026Article
- Ultrasonography of the Fasciae and Common Pathologies: The Game Changer.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
28 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Deep fascia has long been considered a source of pain, secondary to nerve pain receptors becoming enmeshed within the pathological changes to which fascia are subject. Densification and fibrosis are among such changes. They can modify the mechanical properties of deep fasciae and damage the function of underlying muscles or organs. Distinguishing between these two different changes in fascia, and understanding the connective tissue matrix within fascia, together with the mechanical forces involved, will make it possible to assign more specific treatment modalities to relieve chronic pain syndromes. This review provides an overall description of deep fasciae and the mechanical properties in order to identify the various alterations that can lead to pain. Diet, exercise, and overuse syndromes are able to modify the viscosity of loose connective tissue within fascia, causing densification, an alteration that is easily reversible. Trauma, surgery, diabetes, and aging alter the fibrous layers of fasciae, leading to fascial fibrosis.
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Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.