Positive Health Online

Abstract

LAUNSO and colleagues, Department of Social Pharmacy, royal Danish School of Pharmacy, Copenhagen, Denmark write that headache is the most frequently reported symptom among Danish adults, with migraine headache prevalence rates similar to those in various European countries. The authors conducted a prospective and exploratory study of reflexology treatment for headache from 1993 to 1994 with 220 patients with migraine and/or tension headache, using random sampling to determine which patients with headache sought reflexology treatment, why, what previous medication was used for headache and what outcomes patients experienced from reflexology treatment.

Background

Methodology

Headache diaries, registration schemes for practitioners, questionnaires and qualitative interviews were used as data collection methods. Treatment was for a maximum of 6 months by 78 reflexologists systematically drawn from membership lists of 5 associations. A diagnosis of each patients type of headache at treatment outset was made by a consulting physician according to the International Headache Society Classification (1988).

Results

At 3-month follow-up, 81% of patients reported that they were helped by the treatments or were cured of their headache problems. Following participation in the study, 19% of those patients who had formerly taken drugs to control their headaches were able to stop medication support.

Conclusion

Reflexology treatment appeared to improve patients general well-being, energy level, ability to interpret their own body signals and ability to understand the reasons for headache. These relationships, however, may be due to other factors in the treatment environment, and additional studies are required to determine the proximate cause of the therapeutic benefits of reflexology treatment.

References

Launso L et al. An exploratory study of reflexological treatment for headache. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine 5(3): 57-65. May 1999.