Sep
5
2023
Psychooncology. 2008 Feb 26 doi.wiley.com/10.1002/pon.1331
Objective: The objective is to identify whether single 20 min massage sessions were safe and effective in reducing stress levels of isolated haematological oncology patients.Design: Based on a randomised controlled trial, 39 patients were randomised to aromatherapy, massage or rest (control) arm.Measures: The measures were serum cortisol and prolactin levels, quality of life (EORTC QLQ-C30) and semi-structured interviews. Primary outcome measure was the fall in serum cortisol levels.Results: A significant difference was seen between arms in cortisol (P=0.002) and prolactin (p=0.031) levels from baseline to 30 min post-session. Aromatherapy and massage arms showed a significantly greater drop in cortisol than the rest arm. Only the massage arm had a significantly greater reduction in prolactin then the rest arm. The EORTC QLQ-C30 showed a significant reduction in ‘need for rest’ for patients in both experimental arms compared with the control arm, whereas the semi-structured interviews identified a universal feeling of relaxation in patients in the experimental arms.Conclusion: This pilot study demonstrated that in isolated haematological oncology patients, a significant reduction in cortisol could be safely achieved through massage, with associated improvement in psychological well-being. The implications are discussed.
Sep
5
2023
The Father of Applied Kinesiology, George J. Goodheart, DC 1918 – 2008 died on March 5, 2008 at his home at the age of 90.
He was the Founder and Developer of Applied Kinesiology. Through his remarkable observation skills and analytical mind, Dr Goodheart found that normal and abnormal body function could be evaluated using muscle tests.
A 1939 graduate of National College of Chiropractic, Dr. Goodheart was in active practice for over 60 years in Detroit and Grosse Pointe, Michigan. He has authored numerous articles and books on Chiropractic Technique for greater than four decades. His distinguished career includes such highlights as Director of the National Chiropractic Mutual Insurance Company, Research Director for the ICAK-USA., and being the first doctor of chiropractic appointed to the U.S. Olympic Sports Medicine Committee for the 1980 Lake Placid Games.
A second generation Doctor of Chiropractic, nearly 40 years ago, he began to focus not just on skeletal structure but also on the hundreds of muscles that support the bones. He thinks of them as the body’s ambassadors — engaged in a constant, lively communication with the rest of the body. He developed a system, known as applied kinesiology, in which the muscles and surrounding nerves are manipulated not only to alleviate ordinary aches and pains but also to diagnose and treat organic diseases.
Linking muscle dysfunction to diseased organs is not entirely out of the mainstream. For years doctors measured thyroid function by testing how fast the tibial muscle jerks when the Achilles tendon is tapped. But for Goodheart, muscle testing is the diagnostic gold standard. He prods and palpates patients head to toe, searching for tiny tears where muscles attach to bone. These tears feel, he says, like “a bb under a strip of raw bacon.” When “directional pressure” is applied, the bb’s flatten, and slack muscles snap back, their strength restored.
And that, says Goodheart, may help strengthen a weakened organ. Goodheart believes that muscles and organs are linked by the same invisible neuropathways and meridian lines tweaked by acupuncturists. It took
Dr. Goodheart is listed as Innovators in Alternative Medicine by the Time magazine.
Sep
5
2023
Amputees can feel relief from phantom limb pain just by watching someone else performing “virtual” massage. The treatment appears to fool the brain that it is their missing hand being massaged, California researchers say.
New Scientist magazine reports that it harnesses nerve cells in the brain which become active when watching someone else carry out an action. UK experts said this kind of therapy may help amputees, as long as they can go along with the illusion. Mirror neurons in the brain fire up when a person performs an intentional action, such as waving, and also when they observe someone else performing the same action.
They are thought to help predict the intentions of others by simulating the action in the mind. Similar cells exist for touch, and become active both when a person is being touched and when they watch someone else being touched.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, say the reason people do not constantly feel what they observe happening to others is that a person’s sensory cells do not give the right signals, so they know it is not happening to them.
In the study, Vilayanur Ramachandran tested the therapy on ex-soldiers. His first test used a device called a mirror box, which he developed. An amputee puts their remaining limb, in this case their hand, in front of the mirror and their brain is tricked into thinking the mirror image is actually another working limb.
Two amputees had their normal hand touched while using the mirror box, and felt the sensation of being touched on their missing hand. In a second experiment, when amputees watched a volunteer’s hand being stroked, they also began to experience a stroking sensation arising from their missing limb. One even said their pain disappeared for between 10 and 15 minutes.
Dr Ramachandran suggested the amputees “felt” the actions of others because their missing limb provided no feedback to prevent their mirror neurons being stimulated, and therefore not telling them they were not “literally” being touched. “If an amputee experiences pain in their missing limb, they could watch a friend or partner rub their hand to get rid of it.” But Dr Ramachandran said there could be other uses for the therapy, including helping people who have had strokes. “If performed early enough, it may also be used to help stroke patients regain movements by watching others perform their lost actions.”
Kate McIver, of the Pain Research Institute at Liverpool University, said work done there on helping amputees create mental images of pain-free limbs – which operated on the same basic principle as the US research – had also proved effective. She said watching massage could help, but added: “With something external like this, the patient has to accept that the illusion is real for it to work.”
Journal ref: Medical Hypotheses, DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2008.01.008
Sep
5
2023
Researchers are reporting that two of the most commonly used scents in aromatherapy do nothing to heal wounds, relieve pain or enhance immune status, although one did briefly improve mood. In fact, in some cases, distilled water showed more of a salutary effect, the study found.
The study results are published online in the April issue of the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Used for thousands of years in countries such as India and Egypt, aromatherapy has many adherents who say the concentrated oils extracted from flowers improve health and emotional well-being, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Despite its widespread use, there’s little scientific data on the effectiveness of the therapy, the study authors stated.
“This is by far the largest and most comprehensive study of actual physiological outcomes,” Kiecolt-Glaser said. “There are different perspectives on why odors should work in terms of changing physiology, if they do. A lot of aromatherapy literature thinks of it as a drug-specific mechanism.” In other words, that scents work much like drugs work, with very specific effects.
Using this point of view as a starting point, Kiecolt-Glaser and her colleagues, who included husband Dr. Ronald Glaser, looked at the two odors that have been most researched: lemon, which is purported to be stimulating and a mood enhancer, and lavender, which is supposed to be relaxing and is used as a sleep aid. Distilled water was used as a control.
Potential study participants were first screened to see if they had an adequate sense of smell. Fifty-six people were then admitted into the study. During three half-day sessions, half the group was handed an envelope that explained the scent they were about to smell and what to expect. The other participants were simply told they’d be smelling a variety of fruit and floral odors.
Then the researchers taped cotton balls laced with either lemon oil, lavender oil or distilled water below the volunteers’ noses for the duration of the tests. The participants were monitored for blood pressure and heart rate, and the researchers took regular blood samples from each volunteer. The samples were analyzed for changes in different biochemical markers, including Interleukin-6 and Interleukin10, as well as the stress hormones cortisol and norepinephrine.
The researchers then tested the volunteers’ ability to heal by using a standard test in which tape is applied and removed repeatedly on a specific site on the skin. The scientists also tested the volunteers’ reaction to pain by placing their feet in 32-degree water. Finally, the participants filled out three standard psychological tests to assess mood and stress during each session.While lemon oil showed a clear mood enhancement, lavender oil did not, the researchers said. Neither smell had any positive impact on any of the biochemical markers for stress, pain control or wound healing.
Still, research in the field is limited, and it’s doubtful these findings will prove anything.
Sep
5
2023
Here is the absctact from the article in Spine.
Clinical practice implications of the Bone and Joint Decade 2000-2010 Task Force on Neck Pain and Its Associated Disorders: from concepts and findings to recommendations.
Based on best evidence syntheses of published studies on the risk, prognosis, assessment, and management of people with neck pain and its associated disorders, plus additional research projects and focused literature reviews reported in this supplement, the 12-member multidisciplinary Scientific Secretariat of the Neck Pain Task Force followed a 4-step approach to develop practical guidance for clinicians.
The Neck Pain Task Force recommends that people seeking care for neck pain should be triaged into 4 groups:
Grade I neck pain with no signs of major pathology and no or little interference with daily activities;
Grade II neck pain with no signs of major pathology, but interference with daily activities;
Grade III neck pain with neurologic signs of nerve compression;
Grade IV neck pain with signs of major pathology.
In the emergency room after blunt trauma to the neck, triage should be based on the NEXUS criteria or the Canadian C-spine rule. Those with a high risk of fracture should be further investigated with plain radiographs and/or CT-scan. In ambulatory primary care, triage should be based on history and physical examination alone, including screening for red flags and neurologic examination for signs of radiculopathy.
Exercises and mobilization have been shown to provide some degree of short-term relief of Grade I or Grade II neck pain after a motor vehicle collision. Exercises, mobilization, manipulation, analgesics, acupuncture, and low-level laser have been shown to provide some degree of short-term relief of Grade I or Grade II neck pain without trauma.
Those with confirmed Grade III and severe persistent radicular symptoms might benefit from corticosteroid injections or surgery. Those with confirmed Grade IV neck pain require management specific to the diagnosed pathology.
CONCLUSION: The best available evidence suggests initial assessment for neck pain should focus on triage into 4 grades, and those with common neck pain (Grade I and Grade II) might be offered the listed noninvasive treatments if short-term relief is desired.
