Paediatric tuina is massage therapy intended to improve a child's health or well-being.

There will first be a consultation with a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) physician, who will assess the child's problem, then prescribe the right massage, which is given either by the physician or a massage therapist.

Depending on the child's condition, the massage may focus on different parts of the hands and body, such as the stomach or the back.

The physician may prescribe several massage sessions, which may take 20 to 30 minutes each.

"In acute cases, such as a fever or a phlegmy cough, the massage will be done daily over three to five days and preferably with medication," explained Eu Yan Sang's TCM physician Neo Min Jun. Paediatric tuina often focuses on the hands as children have a special set of acupoints on their hands which an adult does not have. Each finger has acupoints that are linked to different areas of the body.

Joyce Teo