There seems to be a belief that the iliotibial band (ITB) cannot be stretched and thus manual treatment on the ITB is futile.
Feeling back stiffness may be all in the head, not in the back
Feelings of back stiffness may be a subjective protective construct of the mind, rather than reflecting objective biomechanical properties of the back.
Does stretching change the myofascial tissue itself?
Long-term stretching seems to occur mostly at a sensory level of the nervous system versus the mechanical properties of the muscle-tendon complex itself.
Cardiovascular Responses to Skeletal Muscle Stretching
Emerging evidence suggests that short-term or long-term stretching exercise may have beneficial cardiovascular responses.
Can massage lessen pain at myofascial trigger points?
The authors concluded that single and multiple massage treatment applications can decrease a client’s pain at myofascial trigger points.
Can manual therapy alter the thoracolumbar fascia?
To believe that manual therapy cannot affect the structure of thoracolumbar fascia is to deny the fundamental characteristic of soft tissue known as creep!
Evidence of both systemic and neural inflammation in fibromyalgia patients
This study provides a concrete evidence for an extensive inflammatory profile in fibromyalgia patients. This dispels the myth that it is all psychogenic.
Real-World Massage Therapy is Effective for Treating Lower Back Pain
After 12 weeks, more than half of the patients reported improved outcomes in terms of pain reduction, and meaningful physical and mental improvement.
Watching your back being massaged improves outcomes
A study from Germany investigated whether watching one’s back during massage increases the analgesic effect of this treatment for lower back pain patients.
Osteoarthritis Isn’t Just Wear And Tear
The study published shows that even correcting for body mass index and age, osteoarthritis of the knee is twice as common now as it was before the 1950s.
