Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27897186›Full record

Trial reportSpinal cord2017

Managing pain and fatigue in people with spinal cord injury: a randomized controlled trial feasibility study examining the efficacy of massage therapy.

J Lovas, Y Tran, J Middleton, R Bartrop, N Moore, A Craig

Open access · bronzeAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Spinal cord, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
13citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 16% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

13 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 24 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Guideline
  4. Trial
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Recent Advances in the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury.The archives of bone and joint surgery · 2024
    Review
  10. Article
  11. Review
  12. Review
  13. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

J LovasJohn Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Kolling Institute of Medical Science, RNSH, St Leonards, New South Wales, Australia.
Y TranJohn Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Kolling Institute of Medical Science, RNSH, St Leonards, New South Wales, Australia.
J MiddletonJohn Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Kolling Institute of Medical Science, RNSH, St Leonards, New South Wales, Australia.
R BartropDiscipline of Psychiatry, Sydney Medical School-Northern, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
N MooreDiscipline of Psychiatry, Sydney Medical School-Northern, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
A CraigJohn Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Kolling Institute of Medical Science, RNSH, St Leonards, New South Wales, Australia.
Northern Sydney Local Health District · AUThe University of Sydney · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

STUDY

designA randomized controlled trial (RCT).

objectivesTo determine the efficacy of massage therapy (MT) as a treatment that could be implemented to reduce pain and fatigue in people with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI).

settingLaboratory setting in Sydney, Australia.

methodsParticipants included 40 people with SCI living in the community who were randomly assigned into one of two RCT arms: MT (Swedish massage to upper body) or an active concurrent control (guided imagery (GI) relaxation). All participants received 30 min once a week of either massage or GI over 5 consecutive weeks. In addition to sociodemographic and injury factors, assessments and reliable measures including the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire and Chalder's Fatigue Scale were validated.

resultsChronic pain and fatigue were significantly reduced in the massage group when assessed at the end of 5 weeks (P<0.05), with large effect sizes. Interestingly, GI was as effective as MT in reducing pain and fatigue. Pain scores were reduced significantly over time in both MT and GI groups (P=0.049 and P=0.032, respectively). Total fatigue scores were also reduced in both MT and GI groups (P=0004 and P=0.037, respectively.)Conclusions:Massage and GI are both active treatments that provide potential clinical benefits for adults with SCI. Future research should clarify the role of massage and GI in managing pain and fatigue in SCI and assess outcomes into the longer-term.

Indexed as

AdultFatigueFeasibility StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMassageMiddle AgedPainPain ManagementPain MeasurementSpinal Cord InjuriesTreatment Outcome

Identifiers

PMID27897186
OpenAlexW2558094426

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.