Discussion of disparity
The majority of the studies included in this review do
indicate that massage reduces perceived levels of soreness.
In spite of this, drawing conclusions from this collection of
work should be with caution, as there is a great amount of
variance in study methods and designs. For example, massage
techniques varied, as did the time spent performing
different strokes. The overall consensus might be that
massage reduces soreness; however, it remains unclear
which techniques and dosages are optimal. The experience
of the therapists was another inconsistency among the
above listed studies. Some of the practitioners were physical
therapy students; others were licensed massage therapists,
while others were physiotherapists. Years of
experience among the practitioners also varied within the
mentioned studies. Backgrounds ranged from student status,
to multiple years of professional experience. It is
difficult to draw any firm conclusions in view of the
discrepancy in practitioner type and years of practice
within the bodywork field. The way in which DOMS was
induced was another inconsistency among these studies.
The muscle groups, exercises performed, angles of
contraction, contraction velocity, and volume of exercise
all varied. It is well documented that these factors can
result in differing degrees of DOMS (Connolly et al., 2003;
Paddon-Jones et al., 2005). It stands to reason, that if induction
methods affect the expression of DOMS, these
methods may also impact treatment success. For example,
if DOMS was induced by performing 100 plyometric jumps,
massage may have a very different result than if the subjects
had performed 6 sets of 5 maximal, voluntary knee
extensions.
Finally, the RBE might well be the most difficult variable
to control within these studies. It is difficult to imagine that
the researchers were able to account for all similar physical
exposures among individual participants for up to two
months prior to testing.