An ancient Chinese form of massage is more effective than conventional therapy in relieving lower back pain, a study suggests. Almost 90 percent of patients said their discomfort was reduced by acupressure treatment in a trial comparing it with mainstream physical therapy.
Previous studies have suggested that acupressure can be effective in alleviating various types of pain, but little has been known about its effects on pain in the lower back. The condition is a common problem and is suffered by millions worldwide.
Less Disability
In Britain alone, more than half a million people claim incapacity benefit because of musculoskeletal conditions including back pain.
For their study, researchers in Taiwan recruited 129 patients with chronic lower back pain from a specialist orthopedic clinic.
All patients completed a standard disability questionnaire before being randomly split into two treatment groups with 64 receiving six sessions of acupressure and 65 given conventional physical therapy. The researchers assessed the patients immediately after their course of treatment had finished and again after six months.The patients in the acupressure group were found to have less disability due to back pain than the other group.
The researchers found that acupressure resulted in an 89 percent reduction in disability and the benefits were still evident at six months. They also saw improvements in leg pain and "pain interfering with normal work," with a reduction in time taken off work as a result.
Lasting Benefits
Professor Tony Hsui-Hsi Chen, of the Institute of Preventive Medicine at the National Taiwan University, said: "This study shows that acupressure is more effective in alleviating low back pain than physical therapy. The effect was not only seen in the short term, but lasted for six months. We hope that this technique can be imparted to other therapists now that its efficacy has been shown in our study, so that acupressure can be used in other populations."
He added that the study, published in the British Medical Journal, will serve as a base for future research.
Conventional physical therapy methods for treating lower back pain can vary.
Common treatments carried out by physiotherapists and chiropractors can include, for example, spinal manipulation where a thrust is applied to a joint in order to increase its mobility.
Other forms of treatment can involve exercise therapy to stretch the muscles, or thermotherapy where heat is applied to the problem area.
It is estimated that physiotherapists in the Health Service treat around 1.3 million people for low back pain each year.
The 5,000 Year Old Therapy
Developed about 5,000 years ago in China, acupressure involves applying pressure with thumbs and fingertips to the same points on the body stimulated in acupuncture, which uses needles.
The complementary therapy has grown in popularity in recent years and is endorsed by celebrities such as singer Cher. Tony Blair was even advised to hone his acupressure skills by giving Cherie a massage each day while she was pregnant with Leo.
Acupressure works on the principle that there are more than 360 "acupoints" all over the body and each has a specific effect on an organ or system, such as the bladder or intestine. Each of the acupoints is located on one of 14 "meridians," which are the body's energy channels connected to all of its systems.
Anything that disturbs the energy flow in the body can make us ill, but stimulating specific pressure points makes the energy flow freely again.
There are different styles of acupressure. Shiatsu, for example, one of the Japanese forms, can be quite vigorous in application, with firm pressure applied to each point for only three to five seconds.
Another style, jin shin, is more gentle and involves pressing a point for a minute or more.
