Pilot randomized single-blind clinical trial, craniosacral therapy vs control on physiological reaction to math task in male athletes. (June 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Wójcik, Małgorzata; Dziembowska, Inga; Izdebski, Paweł; Żekanowska, Ewa
• Is Part Of: International journal of osteopathic medicine. Volume 32(2019)
• Page Start: 7
• Page End: 12
• Publication Date: 2019-06
• Subjects: Craniosacral therapy -- Osteopathy -- Heart rate -- Skin conductance -- Stress response -- Mental task; Osteopathic medicine -- Periodicals; Osteopathic Medicine -- Periodicals; 615.53305
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijosm.2019.04.007
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1746-0689

Abstract

Abstract: Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore how osteopathic treatments influence certain measurable aspects of stress performance in male athletes. Design and participants: Twenty-two (22) healthy male athletes (21, 63 ± 1, 41 years), participated in the study and were randomly allocated to either a craniosacral therapy or placebo group with 11 participants receiving a craniosacral therapy session, and the other 11 a placebo session. Pre- and post-intervention psychophysiological correlates of stress reaction (skin conductance - SC, heart rate – HR and respiratory rate – RR) were measured. Results: Stress induced from an arithmetic task resulted in a significant increase in physiological stress markers such as SC, HR and RR in both groups. Over the short term, craniosacral therapy was associated with a physiological relaxation response (a decrease in HR and SC) and an altered HR and SC response during the math task in comparison to the placebo group. Conclusions: At least over the short term, the results of this study indicate that participating in 20-min exposure to craniosacral treatment may benefit participants by decreasing heart rate reactivity and skin conductance reactivity. Further research, with some modifications, using a larger sample is required to determine the effectiveness of craniosacral therapy for immediate stress reduction of athletes.