Overview
Three windows on the research
- 01Mechanical response of tissue
What changes locally: muscle hardness, shear wave speed.
- 02Blood and metabolites
Short-term biological responses in blood samples.
- 03Symptoms and function
How pain, range of motion and daily life change over time.
Each of the seven lines of research has its own page. Papers and conference presentations from the same study are listed together on that page.
Load, contact size and lumbar muscle hardness
Five loads and three tip diameters compared within subjects.
Layer-specific SWE of the lateral abdominal wall
4.9 N versus 0.49 N; shear wave speed by layer, immediately and at 15 min. Summary of what has been reported so far.
Short-term changes in the blood metabolome
Exploratory screen of 580 metabolites; within- and between-condition results kept apart.
Chronic whiplash-associated disorder
Pain, function and range of motion after a single session; 9 followed to 6 months.
Low back pain, before and after
Muscle hardness and symptoms before and after a 10-minute session.
Severe fibromyalgia
Introducing a low-force technique in a patient with intense pain; 20-day course.
Long COVID / ME/CFS
One published case and a two-patient abstract (ICPM 2026) that includes it.
Reading each design for what it can answer
| Design | Question it mainly answers | Where it leads next |
|---|---|---|
| Condition comparison in healthy adults | How the measurement changes under specified loads | Use in patients, relation to symptoms, persistence |
| Randomised crossover | Whether the response differs between intervention and control in the same person | Quality of blinding, durability, period and order effects, larger samples |
| Single-arm before–after with follow-up | What course was observed after the intervention | Comparative studies that also record natural course, expectation and concurrent treatment |
| Case report, case series | A concrete clinical course, and questions worth testing | Frequency of response, generalisability, causation |
Where the evidence stands
The dose-parameter study measured muscle hardness; the abdominal-wall study measured shear wave speed layer by layer. The clinical studies followed pain, function and fatigue. Blood and metabolite studies report change from baseline and difference from a control condition separately.
Taken together: a local mechanical response has been observed under controlled comparison in healthy adults, and clinical improvement has been documented in uncontrolled designs. Controlled clinical trials and independent replication are the next stage — and the work we most want partners for.
Publications in chronological order ／ Mechanistic hypotheses ／ Collaborate
Sources
- Sugimoto S, Sakato T, Nakayama T, et al. Effect of Kanshoho on lumbar muscle tone [in Japanese]. Journal of Physical Therapy Fundamentals. 2025;28(1):32–38. doi:10.24780/jjptf.JJPTF_2023-17
- Sakaguchi H, Sakato T, Yamamoto K, et al. The effect of Kanshoho on low back pain (lumbago) [in Japanese]. Japanese Journal of Integrative Medicine. 2012;5(1):62–67 (PDF)
- Amitani H, Nishi R, Fukumoto T, et al. Severe fibromyalgia alleviated by the unique muscle relaxation method of applying low force: a case report. Medicine. 2024;103(16):e37929. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000037929
- Amitani H, Sakato T, Asakawa A. Resolution of Long COVID and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms following kanshoho, a low-pressure muscle relaxation technique: a case report. Explore (NY). 2026;22(3):103374. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2026.103374
- Sakato T, Nakajima A. Rapid changes in blood metabolome induced by the low-pressure muscle relaxation technique “Kanshoho”: a randomized single-blind crossover trial. 34th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Pathophysiology, 2025 (presentation slides, PDF, in Japanese)
- Study A (submitted manuscript): shear wave elastography of the lateral abdominal wall in 20 healthy men, randomised crossover pilot study. Trial registration UMIN000056162. This site reports only what is public in the registry and in our symposium abstract for the 28th World Congress of the International College of Psychosomatic Medicine (ICPM 2026, Fukuoka). Full details will be added when the paper is published.
- Manuscript B (presented at conferences; unpublished manuscript): Sakato T, Shin Y, Itai Y, Amitani H. Immediate and mid-term effects of Kanshoho in patients with chronic whiplash-associated disorders: a prospective single-arm pilot study. Presented at the 55th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for the Study of Chronic Pain and the 35th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Pathophysiology (both 2026).
- Abstract C: Clinical improvement after low-load cervical myofascial intervention in patients with Long COVID: a case series. Poster, ICPM 2026 (Fukuoka). Two patients, including the previously published case. Presented by Haruka Amitani, 24 September 2026, poster P1-43. Official programme
Last updated: 22 September 2026