Effects of Acupuncture, Moxibustion, Cupping, and Massage on Sports Injuries: A Narrative Review

Table 4

The application of massage for various diseases.

Condition	Intervention	Area	Comparison	Primary outcomes measure	Effective rate/results/conclusion	References
KOA	Massage plus CMM footbath fumigation and washing	Around the popliteal fossa and knee	Oral administration of meloxicam	Lysholm knee score scale (LKSS)	Intervention group had better clinical efficacy	[48]
KOA	Aromatherapy massage with lavender essential oil	Knee	Massage with almond oil; control (without massage)	VAS for pain	Intervention group was found effective in relieving pain	[49]
Lumbar intervertebral instability	Massage	Waist	Exercise	JOA score and Oswestry disability score	86.7%	[50]
Knee stability and functional recovery	CMF and massage therapy (A)	Around the knee	Normal rehabilitation therapy group	The change in width of ligament tunnel in femur and tibia	A therapy improved knee function earlier	[51]
Plantar heel pain syndrome (PHPS)	DMS	Posterior calf muscles	USS	Functional status (FS)	DMS therapy was significantly more effective than USS	[52]

Note. CMM: Chinese materia medica; DMS: deep massage therapy and neural mobilization with a self-stretch exercise program; KOA: knee osteoarthritis; JOA: Japanese Orthopaedic Association; CMF: Chinese medicine fumigation; USS: ultrasound therapy to the painful heel area with the same self-stretch exercises; VAS: visual analogue scale.