Many people will experience excruciating neck pain at least once in their life. For some it can be a reoccurring, even chronic, type of pain. In many cases the neck pain can lead to the inability to work or perform daily tasks. Common treatment usually consists of drug treatment and physical therapy like massages, stretch and strength exercises, electric nerve stimulation, and heat therapy.
Lately, however, therapists have turned to another option, Qigong. The Qigong therapy offers slow motion exercises especially older people and people with limited mobility can find easier to perform. Scientists at Goeteborg University, Sweden, have studied the effectiveness of this technique. They have come to the conclusion that Qigong is as effective in alleviating strong and stubborn neck pain as traditional western physical therapy options. The study has been published in the Journal Spine, vol. 32, p. 2415-2422.
Qigong, an ancient Chinese therapy technique, offers relieve through slow motion exercises, breathing techniques, and meditation. The exercises serve to slowly strengthen and stretch muscles. The breathing and meditation techniques force patients to focus on their bodies and to positively channel their energy in order to reduce stress. The technique is mostly taught as a prophylactic measure to ensure physical and emotional health and stability. It is also used as a restoring measure.
It has become more and more common for western medical practitioners and therapists to look for advice in ancient healing practices, especially Chinese medical and therapy techniques. Therefore, Qigong has now emerged as a valid therapy method for a multitude of pain ailments. The technique has shown great effectiveness as a treatment method for long-term neck pain.
Until the Swedish study was undertaken, there had been no scientific evidence for the effectiveness of Qigong and the effectiveness of Qigong to treat neck pain. The Swedish scientists enrolled 122 patients in their study. The participants were randomly divided into two groups. One group received the traditional western type physical therapy treatment. The other group was taught to perform Qigong exercises. Each participant in each group received twelve treatments over the course of three months.
The scientists re-evaluated the participants six and again 12 months after the study started. They found that both groups showed equal results in neck pain intensity as well as the ability to move the neck. The scientists concluded that Qigong works and is as effective as traditional physical therapy measures.
Since Qigong exercises are slow motion exercises, and breathing techniques and meditation are equally as important as the motion exercises, the ancient Chinese technique might work very well for elderly and less mobile patients. Furthermore, it is an excellent prophylactic measure and should be recommended to patients prone to episodes of neck pain.
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