Common Misconceptions About Massage

How Massage Therapy Benefits Joint Replacements

Joint replacement surgery, like any surgery, comes with it its share of discomfort before realizing its final results. Most often, how you take yourself post-surgery determines if the results will be favorable or less favorable. Aftercare also contributes to the speed at which you recover. 

There are a few things, including massage therapy, you can do to help better prepare for joint replacement surgery if you are a new candidate for joint replacement or to help alleviate pain and discomfort if you are a past joint replacement recipient. In fact, according to reports, massage therapy plays a significant role in pain management before surgery as well as post-surgery rehabilitation in the following ways: 

It Helps Alleviate Pre-Surgery Pain - Changes to the joints, such as the knee or hip joints, suffered as a result of disease, such as osteoarthritis, or injury are often accompanied by pain and limited mobility, which can compromise your quality of life and lead to sadness. 

Massage therapy has been shown to help relax painful joints and blocks pain signals to the brain, which helps alleviate pain. Studies show that it also increases feel-good endorphins that help relieve anxiety and stress before surgery, which improves the chance of a better outcome as well as recovery. 

It Helps Alleviate Post-surgical Pain - The days following joint replacement surgery are usually marked by acute pain due to the incisions and manipulations to the joints, muscle fibers, ligaments, and tissues. Patients may also experience increased tension in the area, which can limit mobility. Massage helps relieve tension by encouraging relaxation of the muscle fibers, which helps soothe acute pain. Relaxing the muscles also helps improve movement, which helps with a speedy recovery. 

In some cases, following surgery, patients may unknowingly alter the way they move due to the pain, which can cause the muscles and joints to become misaligned and further increase the aches and pains. Relaxing the muscles through massage also helps restore proper alignment to the body for improved posture and less pain. 

It Helps Reduce Fluid Buildup - After joint replacement, metabolic wastes can build up in the muscle, which can cause pain as well as delay the healing process. According to research, massage therapy improves blood and lymph flow, which helps remove built-up wastes from the muscles, thereby increasing healing. 

It Helps Speed Healing - When damaged tissues lack sufficient oxygen and nutrients, it can limit the rate of healing, which can prolong your recovery. Massage improves blood and lymph flow, which helps increase nutrients and oxygen to the damaged area, thereby escalating the healing process for a speedy recovery. 

It Helps Remove Scar Tissue - After joint replacement, the body begins to build scar tissue in the damaged area as part of the natural healing process. However, scar tissue differs from the body's healthy soft, lateral tissue in that it is a hard, cross-fiber tissue, which can limit movement in the area. Therefore, this thick, disorganized scar tissue needs to be broken up and reorganized to restore a full range of motion. 

Massage therapy for scar tissue is often recommended following surgery because it helps reorganize the stiff tissue for improved mobility. During scar tissue massage, the therapist will use a series of both vertical and horizontal manipulations to help loosen and break up some of the scar tissue before reorganizing it into a more natural, linear pattern. This enables the fascia and the muscle to glide more smoothly over each other as well as separate from each other, which helps improve the range of motion. 

It Helps Improve Overall Well-Being - After joint replacement, it can leave you in pain and slightly immobile, which can put you in a slump. Research shows that stress is common following surgery, which can affect you both physically and mentally. Massage therapy helps increase relaxation both physically and mentally, which can instantly improve your mood. Research shows that an improved mood also enhances the mind-body connection, which aids in healing and recovery, so the sooner you can get you back to living. 

Joint replacement is just the beginning of restoring healthy, pain-free joints; however, the rest is up to you. This means developing a plan to properly prepare yourself before surgery as well as taking your aftercare seriously, which will help increase your healing and your results. 

Medical experts report that the most crucial factor in successful joint replacement surgery is the commitment of the patient to the recovery process, which often includes massage therapy. Massage therapists are well-trained to handle post-surgical pain and immobility, which is why doctors often recommend them as part of post-surgery aftercare.

Patients who follow a well-designed post-surgery rehabilitation plan in conjunction with massage therapy have also been shown to be more prepared for the strict physical therapy and exercise required to help rebuild muscle, tendon, and joint strength and movement in the area. 

About the Author

Eugene Wood LMT is a leading massage therapist in Nassau County NY. Learn more about massage therapy and his services by visiting EugeneWoodMassage.com