Soft Tissue Mobilisation & Friction Massage

Soft tissue mobilisation and friction massage are targeted techniques for addressing the scar tissue and fascial adhesions that form within and between muscle and connective tissue structures following injury, overuse, or surgical intervention. Scar tissue is mechanically inferior to the surrounding healthy tissue, less elastic, less strong, and less capable of tolerating the loading demands of sport. When scar tissue bridges adjacent structures, it restricts movement and can become a source of pain, particularly at the interface between moving tissues where the adhesion creates traction during activity.

Friction massage and soft tissue mobilisation techniques apply a controlled mechanical stress to the scar tissue or adhesion, breaking down the cross-links that restrict it and stimulating the remodelling process that replaces disorganised collagen with better-aligned, more mechanically appropriate tissue. This is most relevant in the management of tendon pathologies, post-surgical rehabilitation, and the chronic soft tissue thickening that develops in repeatedly strained muscles. At this practice, it is applied as part of an integrated treatment approach (not as a standalone intervention) and is combined with progressive exercise to provide the mechanical stimulus required for optimal tissue remodelling.