NCT02440412

Effect of Massage Therapy in Cortisol Level

Effects of a Single Session of Massage Therapy in Salivary Cortisol Levels in Asymptomatic Persons With Administrative Tasks and / or Office Work.

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 15 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Chile · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 60 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This study evaluates the effect of a single session of Massage Therapy in salivary cortisol level. All participants were assessed on three conditions: Massage session, rest in supine position listening music, and under normal working conditions. The hypothesis of the investigators is that the effect of the massage action in reduction of cortisol is superior to only rest.

Detailed description

Several studies have postulated that one of the physiological markers of the effect of massage therapy is to reduce the level of cortisol, the "stress hormone". However it is not clear whether the effect is due to the manual action on the skin, or only by the relaxation induced rest. Therefore the variation of salivary cortisol in both conditions, and also in everyday working conditions was compared. Cortisol has a circadian cycle, with a maximum value upon awakening, which decreases during the morning; therefore a sample of saliva (in Salivette tube) it was collected in the three experimental conditions at the same hour time in the morning: 8:45(after intervention), and 9:30 and 10.30 (both, before).

Conditions

• Asymptomatic State

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Massage Therapy	It's a Physical Therapy manual procedure, based in Swedish technique, and applied in a standirzed way for all participants (stroke, kneading, pressure).
OTHER	Rest in supine	It's only rest, in a clinic stretcher, with warm ambient temperature, and listening relaxing music with headphones.

Timeline

• Start date: 2014-07-01
• Primary completion: 2014-11-01
• Completion: 2015-03-01
• First posted: 2015-05-12
• Last updated: 2015-05-12

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Chile