*Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
# Physical Therapy and Manual Therapy Clinic, Chiang Mai 50130, Thailand
Received Date: 25/09/2021; Published Date: 25/10/2021
*Corresponding author: Jirakrit Leelarungrayub, Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Musculoskeletal Disorder (MSD) presented with muscle spasm, local and referred pain, and stiffness on shoulder, neck, back and numbness along the arm is the most common problem among working people who have office syndrome. Myofascial pain syndrome is one of many problems that has been claimed and defined as “painful conditions with trigger points, local and referred pain, tenderness, referred autonomic phenomena” previously [1]. Traditional Thai massage has been performed and is well known around the world with legal course training. The efficacy of traditional Thai massage has been proposed on relaxation effect mainly. Typically, traditional Thai massage can be performed in prone, side-lying, supine, and sitting position under 30-45 min as in a protocol in the previous program [2]. Previous evidence showed that traditional Thai massage could immediately improve the heart rate variability (HRV), pressure pain threshold (PPT), and body flexibility among patients with back pain-associated myofascial trigger points [3]. In addition, Thai massage also have therapeutic effects on pain, muscle tension, and anxiety in a patient with scapulocostal syndrome [4]. Thus, the review report in 2015 indicated that traditional Thai massage can help with treatment for chronic pain [5]. Therefore, traditional Thai massage does not have benefits on relaxation effect but can be used to treat in some cases of myofascial pain-causing from prolonged working unless the cause of pain and numbness from spinal cord compression or bone fracture. Presently, “Therapeutic Thai massage” that differs from traditional Thai massage has been evidentially reported with specific pressured points or signal points along the energy line. Unfortunately, the aim of therapeutic Thai massage is to dissolve the clinical problems, more clinical knowledge, especially anatomy, physiology, pathology, and physical examination must be concerned. In many careers of medical teams, Physical Therapy has been involved those patients for a long time. Conventional treatment with ultrasound, hot pack, joint mobilization, stretching exercise, deep friction, etc., is also the common technique. From the author’s experiences and patient’s compliant of slow recovery from symptoms and more time-spent on treatment. When integrated treatment of physical therapy with therapeutic Thai massage, it can help to dissolve the clinical problem as found in a previous study with joint mobilization technique [6]. In addition, surprise efficacy of using the specific treatment of Therapeutic Thai massage with “Tok Sen” which is used in some alternative medicine clinics. Tok Sen is called hammer massage that composed of the main hammer and various shaped wood. Tok Sen has been inherited from a gentleman of Lanna Knowledge in the northern part of Thailand. The clinical efficacy of Tok Sen on musculoskeletal disorder has not been reported as same as its’ mechanisms. But from the author’s clinic experience, the external vibration effect from hammering on the muscle is possibly the main mechanical effect to primarily loosening the muscle fibers and myofascial bond, then secondarily facilitating the blood flow and releasing of by products as a previous suggestion [7]. It is consistent with the basic idea of Thai traditional theory on opening the wind and energy flow in the body. Therefore, the author short represents the improved symptoms in a female case from chronic pain at shoulder, neck, upper back, and numbness at the hand from office syndrome.
Case: A 35-aged female subject. The symptom was composed of pain at shoulder, neck, upper back and referred pain to the elbow and felt the numbness at the all fingers in the right hand. All symptoms were aggravated after working all day in the evening and turned the neck to the left side. Finally, the office syndrome was preliminarily diagnosed.
Physical Examination: Taut band on the upper trapezius muscles, levator scapulae, and paravertebral muscle around the medial border of the right scapular were found. Referred pain was presented on the upper and forearm laterally, in addition, the numbness at all fingers was felt. She could not cross-hand on the back and felt pain anteriorly in the shoulder region.
Treatments: The program of treatment consisted of a hot pack covering the right shoulder and upper back muscles for 10 minutes in a supine position before continuous treated below sequence.
After 30-45 min in all treatment, the symptoms of pain, muscle tension, numbness, and shoulder movement were rechecked. Then, therapeutic ultrasound was used somewhere that presented local pain from previous treatment.
Quickly responds with no pain on shoulder, neck, and upper back, and numbness at the fingers, as well as the shoulder, could move cross-back easily with less muscle tightness after the first visited treatment. Moreover, no referred pain on the upper arm and elbow. The neck could turn to the left easily without provoking the any symptoms.
1. This clinical experience with Therapeutic Thai massage and Tok Sen can be integrated with Physical Therapy on pain, muscle tightness and spasm, and numbness from peripheral entrapment with tendon, fibrous or ligament.
2. This combined treatment can reduce the treated cost and time.
3. The protocol treatment is not necessarily the use of any expensive devices.