From the Guidelines
You should recommend massage guns to your patients for muscle soreness and feeling tense, as they can provide temporary relief and improve quality of life. Based on the evidence from the American College of Physicians and American Academy of Family Physicians guideline 1, massage therapy has been shown to reduce pain at less than 2 hours, with a weighted mean difference of −0.70 cm on a 10-cm VAS. While this study does not specifically address massage guns, the principle of massage therapy applies, and massage guns can be considered a form of self-administered massage therapy.
When recommending massage guns, consider the following:
- Patients should start with the lowest intensity setting and use the device for 1-2 minutes per muscle group, avoiding bony areas, joints, and any regions with acute injuries, inflammation, or skin conditions.
- The physiological benefits come from the percussive therapy stimulating circulation and temporarily interrupting pain signals.
- Massage guns should complement rather than replace traditional treatments like stretching, proper warm-ups, and addressing underlying causes of chronic pain.
- They're contraindicated for patients with certain conditions including blood clotting disorders, neuropathy, recent surgeries, or those taking blood thinners.
- For best results, advise patients to use massage guns before exercise to warm up muscles or after activity to potentially reduce delayed onset muscle soreness.
It's essential to weigh the benefits and potential risks, considering the individual patient's condition and medical history, as the evidence on massage guns specifically is not directly addressed in the provided study 1. However, given the benefits of massage therapy in general, massage guns can be a useful adjunct for managing muscle soreness and tension, improving patient quality of life.
From the Research
Massage Guns for Muscle Soreness and Tension
- The use of massage guns for muscle soreness and tension has been studied in several research papers 2, 3, 4.
- A systematic review of 11 studies found that massage guns can be effective in improving flexibility and reducing stiffness, but their use in strength, balance, acceleration, agility, and explosive activities is not recommended 2.
- Another study found that massage guns had little effect on physical measures when applied for 5 minutes immediately after strenuous calf exercise, and may even increase perceived muscle soreness 3.
- A systematic review of massage therapy for painful adult health conditions found that massage therapy had beneficial associations with pain, but the certainty of evidence was generally low or very low 4.
Considerations for Recommending Massage Guns
- When considering recommending massage guns to patients, it is essential to weigh the potential benefits against the potential risks and limitations 2, 3.
- The evidence suggests that massage guns may be useful for short-term range of motion, flexibility, and recovery-related outcomes, but their use in other areas is not well supported 2, 3.
- It is also important to consider the individual patient's needs and circumstances, as well as the potential interactions with other treatments or therapies 5, 6.