Abstract
Question Permanent nociceptive influx may lead to functional changes in the nervous system, i.e. hyperalgesia and allodynia occur. These processes are suspected to contribute substantially to the ongoing pain process. Reflex therapies, like the Gua Sha, a traditional Chinese massage technique preferentially used in the treatment of back pain, are supposed to affect the transmission and processing of sensory information on receptor and spinal level [1] . If so one could assume that the Gua Sha massage should not only decrease the pain level itself, but also change sensory thresholds in the affected areas. In order to test this, we applied the Gua Sha massage in patients with chronic back pain and evaluated sensory threshold changes. Methods Thirty patients with chronic back pain (mean age 50.3±10.1 years) were randomized to treatment group (TG) or waiting list control group (WLC). At T1 all patients rated their pain on a 0–10 VAS scale. Baseline sensory testing was then conducted, followed by Gua Sha massage for the TG. Seven days later (T2) sensory testing was repeated and the WLC received Gua Sha. Testing included determination of mechanical detection threshold (MDT), pressure pain threshold (PPT) and vibration detection threshold (VDT) as described in the Quantitative Sensory Testing procedure (QST) by Rolke et al. [2] at the site of maximal pain, 10 cm next to the pain maximum and two control areas. In accordance to the QST procedure MDT and PPT scores were logarithmized. For further analysis, differences between T1 and T2 were compared between TG and WLC. Results First results show a significant decrease in mean pain ratings for the TG compared with the WLC ( p p Conclusions GuaSha not only decreased pain intensity for 35% on average compared with 4.6% increase in the WLC. TG also showed increased MDT and PPT at 10 cm next to the pain maximum. Together with the steady thresholds in both control areas this can be interpreted as the result of functional changes in the sensitized area. It appears that Gua Sha reduced allodynia in the pain surrounding area.
Published Version
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