Massage Indications, Contraindications, and Precautions

1. Indications for massage

Massage therapy has a wide range of applications.

(1) Internal Medicine: Common cold, headache, dizziness, toothache, insomnia, stomachache, abdominal distension, abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, indigestion, intestinal adhesion, and vertigo caused by insufficient blood supply to the brain, etc.

(2) Gynecology: dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, breast hyperplasia, etc.

(3) Pediatrics – Pseudomyopia, strabismus, muscular torticollis, sequelae of poliomyelitis, pediatric limb disabilities, joint deformities, infantile food accumulation, infantile malnutrition with emaciation, pediatric indigestion, pediatric convulsions, etc. in children.

(4) Orthopedics and Traumatology: Acute (chronic) soft tissue injuries throughout the body, minor bone fractures, joint dislocations, vertebral slippage, dislocation, misalignment or deviation, slippage or displacement of muscles, tendons, and ligaments, cervical and lumbar intervertebral disc herniation, cervical spondylosis, periarthritis of shoulder, low back and leg pain caused by various reasons, superior gluteal nerve injury, piriformis syndrome, hyperosteogeny, and rheumatism arthralgia, rheumatic arthritis, etc.

(5) Neurology Trigeminal neuralgia, brachial plexus neuralgia, intercostal neuralgia, sciatica, facial paralysis, short-term sequelae of stroke, etc.

2. Contraindications

The following conditions are not suitable for massage therapy.

Tuberculosis, purulent infection.

Skin wellness, traumatic injuries with skin rupture, burns, scalds, furuncles, boils, sores, ulcers, etc.

The area that is bleeding.

Undergoing fracture reduction or bone dislocation correction supports.

Non-union stage after fracture reduction.

The application on the lumbosacral region during pregnancy and menstrual period in women should be carried out as appropriate.

Excessive hunger, overeating, intoxication, after strenuous exercise, and those who are excessively weak.

The epigastric region within half an hour after meals.

Individuals with severe Heart wellness and Heart failure.

Massage therapy is not suitable for the supports of infectious wellness or genetic wellness.

3. Precautions

The massage techniques should be even, forceful, skillful, and gentle, striving to penetrate into the subcutaneous tissue. However, it is crucial not to use brute force or violence, as prolonged massage or excessive force can easily cause damage to the skin, muscles, and other subcutaneous tissues or lead to aseptic inflammation.

After applying heavy-stimulation manipulation techniques to a specific area, it is essential to use rubbing (mo fa) or kneading (rou fa) methods to helps with occasional any pain.

Generally, rapid effects are observed in newly developed and mild conditions; while slow effects are seen in chronic and severe conditions.

For some chronic wellness with dysfunction, such as adhesive periarthritis of shoulder and sequelae of injury, pain may become more severe than before after massage therapy during the functional recovery period, and the pain will helps with occasional spontaneously after functional recovery.

In some cases, subcutaneous hemorrhage occurs after massage, which should be considered normal. This is because the cause of pain is mostly “pain due to obstruction,” and the reason for obstruction is the presence of blood stasis in the body. Blood stasis gradually accumulates and increases within blood vessels, blocking the channels and forming blood stasis masses. These blood stasis masses have turned purplish-black within the blood vessels. After massage techniques are applied, these blood stasis masses disperse and infiltrate into the subcutaneous capillary network, causing the skin to turn purplish-black.

For some patients with muscle atrophy, significant swelling can occur in the atrophied muscle areas after manual massage, which is a manifestation of improved blood circulation. The emergence of this situation is a sign of a good prognosis for the recovery of the atrophied muscles.