Reflexology relieves pain suffered by patients with kidney stone

A few years ago, researchers at Glostrop hospital, Copenhagen, demonstrated that reflexology can help relieve the acute pain suffered by patients with kidney stones. 30 patients participated in the study and were divided equally into three groups: one group received reflexology treatment, one group received placebo treatment and the remaining groups were used as controls.

If no pain relief was experienced within 5 minutes, the treatment would end for analgesic medications, but those who experienced a benefit within 5 minutes, treatment was continued for a further 10 minutes. The results showed that 9 out of the 10 patients in the reflexology group experienced complete pain relief after the treatment which lasted for over an hour and in 5 of the patients pain was relieved for 4 hours.

Medical doctors Niels Baekgaard and Vibe Hansen, who conducted the study, concluded that "Reflexology treatment of acute ureterolithiasis has a pain relieving effect" and when compared to Baralgin (a commonly administered analgesic), the findings revealed that reflexology actually works faster at alleviating pain although the effects last for a shorter duration.