Background and Objective: Anma is a traditional Japanese bodywork therapy that has not been widely known and used in the West. There have been only a few Anma studies published in English journals. To study the effect of Anma (traditional Japanese massage) among participants who have neck and shoulder stiffness symptoms (so-called Katakori , in Japanese). Methods: The study participants consisted of seventy-seven (Study 1), thirteen (Study 2), and twenty (Study 3) adults with “ Katakori ” symptoms. The research design is as follows: (Study1) Randomized, Parallel-Group, Controlled Trial. (Study 2) Crossover Clinical Trial. (Study 3) Randomized, Parallel-Group, Controlled Trial. And we conducted Anma treatment for 45 minutes (Treatment) or rest in lying position for 45 minutes (Control). Results: In study 1, the symptom of “ Katakori ” was relieved after Anma treatment in Anma group (p < 0.001, effect size (es) d : 2.2). There was a significant interaction between the Anma group and the control group (p < 0.001). In study 2, MBV significantly increased following Anma treatment. There was a significant interaction between the Anma group and the control group (p = 0.022). In study 3, the symptom of “ Katakori ” was relieved after Anma treatment in the treatment group. There were no significant interactions between the groups in VAS and MBV values. Discussion and Conclusions: The study demonstrated that Anma therapy decreases “ Katakori ” symptoms while increasing MBV in the shoulder region.
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