ANN ARBOR, Mich., Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A 20-minute back massage may help relieve pain and reduce anxiety following major surgery when given in addition to pain medications, a U.S. study found.

Allison R. Mitchinson of the department of Veterans Affairs, VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, Mich., and colleagues conducted a randomized controlled trial involving 605 veterans -- average age 64 -- undergoing major surgery involving chest or abdominal operations from 2003 to 2005.

Patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups for the five days following surgery: 203 received routine care; 200 received a daily 20-minute back massage; and 202 received 20 minutes of individual attention each day from a massage therapist, but no massage.

"The purpose of the third group was to assess the effect of emotional support independent of massage," the study authors said in a statement.

The study, published in the Archives of Surgery, found the patients in the massage group experienced a faster rate of decrease in pain intensity and unpleasantness during the first four postoperative days compared with the control group.