The field of medical massage is growing tremendously. There is
increasing clinical evidence of the benefits of therapeutic massage
in treating a variety of physical ailments. The medical field has
not always been open to massage as a treatment method for patients,
as doctors were more accustomed to prescribing drugs to treat pain
and illness. Today, many medical doctors are now hiring certified
massage therapists to work beside them in their practices.
A medical massage therapist is trained specifically to help
decrease the symptoms of diagnosed illnesses. Extensive study in
pathology is essential in order to be an efficient medical massage
therapist. It is also important to be able to speak the "language"
of the medical profession. Some of the disciplines which fall under
the medical massage field are neuromuscular therapy, Cranio-Sacral
Therapy (CST), myofascial release, lymphatic drainage, massage for
cancer patients and orthopedic massage.
