What are the side effects of vibration massage

The types of massagers

In this article we will look at the following types of massagers.
1. Hand held vibrating massagers
2. Vibrating plates
3. Convention massage (for comparison)

Handheld massagers

As mentioned above massagers that provide purely localised therapeutic vibrations are very safe, while those designed to drive their heads into your muscles are not. The following infographic outlines the difference between the two machines, and you can find more information about how to choose one in this article . Following the infographic we discuss the specific benefits and side effects of each.

Pure vibration vs driving heads in

Pure vibration massagers

Side effects and adverse effects

These massagers just sit on the surface and send in vibrations so they are extremely safe. From our 30 years of using them in a chiropractic clinic and an extensive search of the scientific journals the only adverse or side effects are very rare temporary discomfort. If you tried to something completely inappropriate such as massage an injury it will still cause problems, but if you follow reasonable precautions such as outlined in our Vibration massage usage guide you should be fine.

Massagers that drive their heads into your muscles

Effectiveness

Massage gun marketers claim that driving driving their heads into your muscles increases penetration and adds the benefits of conventional massage. As discussed in our article Are massage guns scientifically proven this is a highly deceptive marketing gimmick, with them actually being far less effective than those machines that just deliver vibrations. Please see the article for details, but we will briefly address the main points.

Massage guns deliver far less therapeutic vibrations

It is the vibrations that have the therapeutic effects, and referring to the infographic above massage guns deliver far less of these than a genuine vibration massager. Further, as discussed in our article Are massage guns scientifically proven because massage guns are so dangerous they cannot be used at the best therapeutic vibration frequencies.

Recommendations

As you can see massage guns or percussion massagers are purely a marketing gimmick. Compared with genuine vibration massagers they are less effective and certainly capable of giving far more side effects and adverse reactions. Before getting a hand held massager we thoroughly recommend you check out our article How to choose a massager .

Vibrating plates or platforms

Vibrating plates or platforms are designed to vibrate your whole body or large parts. They are used in three main ways.

1. To exercise on
2. To vibrate part of your body (eg. resting feet on the plate to increase circulation)
3. To directly apply vibration massage (eg. sitting on one to massage your buttocks)

Recommendations

Exercising

Vibration platforms are used in gyms to increase the effectiveness of exercising. Simply, the vibrations mean your body has to work harder to maintain stability. Vibrations certainly do this, but surely there are better ways than by exposing you to hazards that would be deemed unsafe on a worksite?

Vibrating parts of your body

Vibrating you body has been shown to give a very small increase in circulation. It would certainly be a lot less than the increase you would get from doing light exercise. As an example vibration plates are marketed for people to rest their feet on in order to increase circulation in their legs. Going for a walk would increase circulation more, without the afore mentioned vibration risks.

Using a vibration plate as a massager

Vibration plates can be used like that, but they are really not designed for this purpose. Their frequency and how far the plate goes up and down are not optimum for therapeutic vibrations. Also, whereas a handheld vibration massager would send “focused” therapeutic vibrations into your muscles a plate would be more likely to vibrate large parts of your body with the afore mentioned dangerous vibrations.

Conventional massage

Vibrating massagers are often used instead of conventional massage so we will look at the potential side effects and adverse effects of conventional massage by comparison.

Side effects and adverse effects

Conventional massage is recognised as being very safe. Therapists do press into your muscles so if they do a more forceful vigorous massage there is potential for some pain or soreness. However, reports of any serious damage are extremely rare, and usually involve “unusual” massage techniques and or lay therapists (10–12)⁠.

References

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3. Cheatham SW, Baker RT, Behm DG, Stull K, Kolber MJ. Mechanical percussion devices: A survey of practice patterns among healthcare professionals. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2021;16(3):766–77.
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7. Burström L, Nilsson T, Wahlström J. Whole-body vibration and the risk of low back pain and sciatica: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Vol. 88, International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health. 2015. p. 403–18.
8. Cardinale M, Pope MH. The effects of whole body vibration on humans: Dangerous or advantageous? Acta Physiol Hung. 2003;90(3):195–206.
9. Jesse Muir, Ph.D.1, Douglas P. Kiel, M.D., M.P.H2, and Clinton T. Rubin PD. Safety and severity of accelerations delivered from whole body vibration exercise devices to standing adults. J Sci Med Sport. 2013;16(6):526–0531.
10. Ernst E. The safety of massage therapy. Rheumatology. 2003;42(9):1101–6.
11. Cherkin D et. al. A Review of the Evidence for the Effectiveness , Safety , and Cost of acupuncture, massage therapy, and spinal manipulation for back pain. Ann Intern Med. 2003;38:898–906.
12. Kumar S, Beaton K, Hughes T. The effectiveness of massage therapy for the treatment of nonspecific low back pain: A systematic review of systematic reviews. Int J Gen Med. 2013;6:733–41.
13. Freiwald J, Baumgart C, Kühnemann M, Hoppe MW. Foam-Rolling in Sport und Therapy- Potential benefits and risks. Sport Orthop Traumatol. 2016;32(3):267–75.