ArticlePain medicine (Malden, Mass.)2016
The Impact of Massage Therapy on Function in Pain Populations-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: Part I, Patients Experiencing Pain in the General Population.
Article in Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03593772 (Mission Reconnect), which is not on this map. Cited by 47 papers, 4 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.
Mission Reconnect: Delivering a Mobile and Web Based Self Directed Complementary and Integrative Health Program to Veterans and Their Partners to Manage Pain and PTSD
Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 175 citations in OpenAlex.
- A Systematic Review of Practiced-Based Research of Complementary and Integrative Health Therapies as Provided for Pain Management in Clinical Settings: Recommendations for the Future and a Call to Action.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2022Pooled it
- Massage for Pain: An Evidence Map.Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2019Pooled it
- The Impact of Massage Therapy on Function in Pain Populations-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: Part III, Surgical Pain Populations.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2016Pooled it
- The Impact of Massage Therapy on Function in Pain Populations-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: Part II, Cancer Pain Populations.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2016Pooled it
- Outcomes of a Remotely Delivered Complementary and Integrative Health Partnered Intervention to Improve Chronic Pain and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Trial
- Evaluating the role of Shujing Tongdu massage in enhancing wound recovery and alleviating spinal disease symptoms: A randomized controlled trial.International wound journal · 2024Trial
- The Impact of Massage and Reading on Children's Pain and Anxiety After Cardiovascular Surgery: A Pilot Study.Pediatric critical care medicine : a journal of the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the World Federation of Pediatric Intensive and Critical Care Societies · 2018Trial
- Perceived helpfulness of 56 treatment options in patients with chronic pain: a retrospective review.Pain management · 2026Article
- Therapeutic mechanisms of acupuncture therapy for acute pain in the emergency department.Integrative medicine research · 2026Review
- Presumed parasitic meningoencephalitis following fresh snail exposure: physiotherapy interventions and functional outcomes in two distinct families and one solo case.BMC neurology · 2026Article
- Short-Term Tensiomyography Responses of the Vastus Medialis to Percussive Massage Therapy with Different Frequency-Duration Combinations.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- MASSAG model: Towards an integrative neuroscience framework linking emotional trauma, pain, and mechanisms of force-based manipulations.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2026Review
- A Comparative Analysis Between Soft Tissue Manipulation and Pharmacotherapy in TMJ Myofascial Dysfunction Management: A Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of therapeutic massage & bodywork · 2025Article
- Impact of Manual Therapy on Plantar Pressures in Patients with Fibromyalgia: A Single-Arm, Non-Randomized Pilot Clinical Trial.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- An update on non-pharmacological interventions for pain relief.Cell reports. Medicine · 2025Review
- Integrated manual therapies: IASP taskforce viewpoint.Pain reports · 2024Article
- Respond to the editor regarding "The investigation of effect on foot plantar massage on functional recovery in older adults with general surgery, randomized clinical trial".Aging clinical and experimental research · 2024Article
- Article
- The Multisystem effects of Long COVID Syndrome and Potential Benefits of Massage Therapy in Long COVID Care.International journal of therapeutic massage & bodywork · 2024Article
- The Indonesian consumer perspective on the massage industry: A conjoint analysis approach.PloS one · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposePain is multi-dimensional and may be better addressed through a holistic, biopsychosocial approach. Massage therapy is commonly practiced among patients seeking pain management; however, its efficacy is unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis is the first to rigorously assess the quality of massage therapy research and evidence for its efficacy in treating pain, function-related and health-related quality of life outcomes across all pain populations.
methodsKey databases were searched from inception through February 2014. Eligible randomized controlled trials were assessed for methodological quality using SIGN 50 Checklist. Meta-analysis was applied at the outcome level. A diverse steering committee interpreted the results to develop recommendations.
resultsSixty high quality and seven low quality studies were included in the review. Results demonstrate massage therapy effectively treats pain compared to sham [standardized mean difference (SMD) = -.44], no treatment (SMD = -1.14), and active (SMD = -0.26) comparators. Compared to active comparators, massage therapy was also beneficial for treating anxiety (SMD = -0.57) and health-related quality of life (SMD = 0.14).
conclusionBased on the evidence, massage therapy, compared to no treatment, should be strongly recommended as a pain management option. Massage therapy is weakly recommended for reducing pain, compared to other sham or active comparators, and improving mood and health-related quality of life, compared to other active comparators. Massage therapy safety, research challenges, how to address identified research gaps, and necessary next steps for implementing massage therapy as a viable pain management option are discussed.
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.