Effects of Massage on Blood Pressure in Patients With Hypertension and Prehypertension: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Authors: I-Chen Liao, Shiah-Lian Chen, Mei-Yeh Wang, Pei-Shan TsaiJournal: The Journal of cardiovascular nursingPublished: October 17, 2016DOI: 10.1097/JCN.0000000000000217

Q2 JournalSJR: 0.75h-index: 32SCImago

Strong EvidenceMeta Analysis

High Blood Pressure

In Plain Language: high blood pressure, explained

Researchers combined results from multiple studies testing whether massage could lower blood pressure in people with high blood pressure or prehypertension. They found that massage therapy did produce measurable reductions in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure across the studies reviewed.

Key Findings: what this meta-analysis found about high blood pressure

✓Massage therapy produced measurable reductions in systolic blood pressure in patients with hypertension and prehypertension.
✓Massage therapy produced measurable reductions in diastolic blood pressure in patients with hypertension and prehypertension.
✓The blood pressure-lowering effects of massage were consistently observed across multiple randomized controlled trials included in the meta-analysis.

What This Means for You

Massage appears to help lower blood pressure based on combined evidence from multiple studies, though it works best alongside other treatments like medication and lifestyle changes.

What This Means for Practitioners

This meta-analysis provides solid evidence that massage can be a beneficial complementary therapy for hypertension management, supporting its inclusion in integrated treatment approaches.

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High blood pressure: common questions

What does this study say about high blood pressure?

Massage appears to help lower blood pressure based on combined evidence from multiple studies, though it works best alongside other treatments like medication and lifestyle changes.

What did this study find?

Massage therapy produced measurable reductions in systolic blood pressure in patients with hypertension and prehypertension. Massage therapy produced measurable reductions in diastolic blood pressure in patients with hypertension and prehypertension. The blood pressure-lowering effects of massage were consistently observed across multiple randomized controlled trials included in the meta-analysis.

How strong is this evidence?

This is a meta-analysis and we rate its evidence strong. It was published in The Journal of cardiovascular nursing, a Q2 journal. This study is indexed here for context; it did not test reflexology itself.