Two people have died after undergoing a popular ‘neck-twisting’ massage popular tourist destinations in Thailand.
Chayada Prao-hom, a 20-year-old singer Thai known as Ping Chayada, died this month after undergoing three sessions, which she says left her paralysed.
She had wanted to relieve shoulder pain, but two days later, the pain had spread to her neck.
Her right arm grew weak, numbness spread through her body, and then, on December 8, she died, The Straits Times reported.
The Thai artist’s death was listed as sepsis, a swollen spinal cord and a fungal infection, Udon Thani public health officer Dr Somchaichot Piyawatwela said.
A day earlier, a Singaporean tourist – Lee Mun Tuk, 52 – went into cardiac arrest and died after a 45-minute massage in Phuket, Thailand.
In social media posts before her death, Chayada blamed her deteriorating health on the massages, which were conducted at a licensed massage parlor.
Ms Aoy, Chayada’s masseuse, told Bangkok Post: ‘I was so shocked when I heard that I was that masseuse
‘I have been a masseuse for years and I have never faced such a situation before.
‘I am asking for fairness and am ready to prove the truth.’
An investigation has been launched into Chayada’s death, which has sparked warnings about the massage.
Dr Pandu Riono, a doctor at the Public Health Faculty at Universitas Indonesia, warned it could increase risk of damage to nerves and blood vessels around the neck.
Writing on Facebook, Thai neurologist Thiravat Hemachudha warned that neck twisting, or massages on the cervical spine, could trigger paralysis.
It’s occurred in at least 55 patients between the ages of 21 to 60 in the US, he claimed.
This week, Harnelis, a massage therapist with the White Swallow Massage School in Indonesia, told news.com.au she always refuses to crack patients’ bones and joints.
But one patient availed of it elsewhere. She said: ‘I had an elderly female patient who had a bad back and she asked a family member to massage her every day and crack it. Eventually, she was in so much pain that she was left paralysed and I had to take her to hospital.’
‘When we looked at the X-ray, I could see that she had a slipped vertebra in her spine. The only option was for her to have an operation to fix it.’
Warning people to be careful, she said: ‘Neck and back massage is inherently dangerous and deals with the most vulnerable part of the body.
‘You can’t do it carelessly, you have to do it keeping in mind where all the veins and blood vessels are. If you get it wrong, it can be fatal.
‘We are not allowed to do cracking or twisting. People find that it feels good for a moment, but it can move the bones and joints out of alignment, especially if you do it routinely.’
Harnelis added: ‘If you have a neck problem, you need gentle stretching, never cracking.’
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