ASTR (Active Soft Tissue Release)

What is ASTR
(Active Soft Tissue Release) from Japan?

The book on ASTR was published in 2007 for advanced professional manual therapists.
It is currently available in Japan and only at J.CARE in North America.

ASTR is a manual therapy technique invented by orthopedic surgeon Dr. Fujio Matsumoto and shiatsu therapist Masakazu Kutsunugi in their daily clinical practice.
It is a combination technique between Trigger Point Therapy, Myofascial Release, and stretching.

What are the principles
of ASTR?

The body and its function are evaluated using motion/static palpation. By applying external pressure to “hook” the specific spots on a soft tissue (muscle, myofascia, ligament, tendon, tendon sheath), a practitioner mobilizes the adjacent joints, while still maintaining the hook position, and moves (active /assistive /passive /resisted) them in the right direction. This allows the practitioner to target and focus on stretching the most restrictive part of the soft tissue effectively and quickly.

ASTR is an easy-to-learn technique which does not rely solely on a therapist’s sensitive fingertips for monitoring. While observing a patient’s body response during ASTR, therapists can safely and quickly treat pain.

The Benefits of ASTR

For patients:

  • Effectively treats both major and minor pain and discomfort in limbs. (ASTR focuses on small specific areas of the body).
  • Helps treat stubborn conditions characterized by limited range of motion such as a frozen shoulder.
  • Can be safely applied to all patients, from children to elderly, or those with difficulty staying in relaxed position. (ASTR is performed in ‘release position’).
  • Combined with therapeutic assessment, ASTR helps treat a wide range of chronic pain conditions in the neck, shoulder, back, hip and knee.

For therapists:

  • Easy-to-learn technique and theory, which makes it useful in daily clinical practice for advanced professional therapists with the knowledge of anatomy, physiology and kinesiology.
  • Prompt stretching technique enables therapists to examine patients’ progress in the short period.

Meet our ASTR Practitioners

NAOMI TABIRA
Tsuchikawa Takayuki
TAKAYUKI TSUCHIKAWA