With this book's streamlined, innovative approach, you'll learn how to manage and assess medical information in order to determine massage contraindications. Its central tool is the Decision Tree, a simple flowchart that helps you break down complex medical issues into small, easy-to-manage parts in order to determine the optimal massage therapy approach for clients who have specific medical conditions. Medical Conditions and Massage Therapy is divided into three parts: Part I provides a framework for managing massage contraindications, Part II discusses medical conditions by body system, and Part III addresses special considerations for cancer and medical treatments. Decision Trees are provided for each of the 58 medical conditions discussed in the book. You'll also learn how to use the Decision Tree approach to manage any medical condition. Conditions in Brief, which appear in a table at the end of each Part II chapter, offer concise information and interview questions for 140 additional medical conditions. Pressure Scale demonstrates the five basic massage pressure levels both visually and in simple language. -Principles of Massage Contraindications are concise, memorable, and easy to apply in a range of client presentations. -Interview Questions for each condition help you understand not just the medical condition, but how it presents in a particular client. - Massage Guidelines linked to interview questions enable you to customize a treatment plan for each individual client. - Massage Research guides you to studies on the use and clinical benefits of massage therapy for specific medical conditions. - Medications and Massage offers a simple method for fine-tuning a massage plan for clients taking prescription or over-the-counter drugs. (c) 2011 432 pages