Can Increasing Acceleration Factors of a Massage Gun Increase Blood Flow Within 2-Minutes in the Popliteal Artery - a Pilot Study

Percussive massage devices have gained popularity in the last few years for their claimed holistic benefits to promote recovery. Very little research exists to support these widely marketed claims. To date only 2 articles exist suggesting it takes 5 minutes to see improvement in blood flow. PURPOSE: Determine if a larger head and increased amplitude can alter blood flow in the popliteal artery within 2 minutes. METHODS: 11 individuals (age=24.1士4.2yrs, ht=175士10.3cm, wt=71.3士9.9kg) participated in this study. Each participant came in for 3 sessions that consisted of a sham treatment (ST), a 2-minute percussive massage treatment (2M), and a 5-minute percussive massage treatment (5M). Participants lay prone for 5 minutes before a baseline pulse-wave measurement. One of 3 treatments occurred and another pulse-wave measurement was taken immediately after cessation of treatment. The time between treatment end and pulse-wave measurement was recorded. RESULTS: Measured variables were not influenced by age, weight, and height. Within group analysis of pre to post measures showed no significant change in any variable for ST. TAMean for both 2M (p=0.0110) and 5M (p=0.0401) increased. Both 2M and 5M showed significant increases in TAMean (p=0.0044 and p=0.0093) and VolFlow (p=0.044 and p=0.0109). No significant changes were found in heart rate, peak systolic, and vessel diameter. CONCLUSION: TAMean and VolFlow increased significantly following both 2M and 5M, but not in ST. Heart rate remained unchanged, indicating only localized tissues were affected. This suggests larger acceleration factors may promote improved localized blood flow within a shorter 2-miinute time interval. Further research is recommended to determine if these blood flow changes persist over time similar to previous studies of 5 and 10 minutes.