Thai singer dies after massage appointment twists neck, investigation underway - theSun

[mnews]

A singer in Thailand passed away following three massage appointments that went south as her neck was twisted during one of the massage appointments.

Following the celebrity, Phing Chayada’s death, many Thai news portals have reported her death as a cautionary tale alongside warnings from health experts regarding massage practices that could endanger one’s safety.

According to Phing’s Facebook post on Thursday (Dec 5), she said she went to a massage parlour in Udon Thani, northeast of the country and reported having shoulder pain prior to the massage.

She added in her post that during the massage procedure, her neck was twisted by the masseuse and after two days, started feeling some pain at the back of the neck; however, Phing only assumed it was “normal post-massage pain” and took some medication to alleviate her pain.

“A week later, I started feeling numbness in my arms. I went back for another massage with the same (masseuse) in the same room. They twisted my neck again.

“After 2 weeks, the pain became much worse. I couldn’t even lie flat on my back anymore.

“My mom is a massage therapist, and I’ve been learning to massage since I was a child. I love massages, so I didn’t think much of it and thought it was just a side effect of the massage (the body pain),” she further explained in her post.

Despite the alarming side effect, she went back to the same place but got a different masseuse, who did not twist Ping’s neck but massaged her body “very hard” which she claimed resulted in bruises and swelling for weeks.

Ping continued to take medication to relieve her pain but to her horror, she started feeling a tingly sensation in her fingertips, akin to an electric shock, accompanied with an itching sensation on her fingers and hands and feeling hot and cold “all the time”.

The sensation spread all over Ping’s body when she bent her body over, the sensation would run down her leg and later realised that the right side of her body became numb – which then started spreading to her stomach and chest.

“The numbness gradually got worse. Two weeks later, I couldn’t lift my right arm anymore (it was weak). Now, my body is functioning at less than 50%,” Ping added.

Meanwhile, the Thai authorities have investigated the massage parlour, ensuring if it possesses the correct license.

Thailand’s Deputy Director-General of the Department of Health Service Support (DHSS) confirmed in a report by Bangkok Biz News that the department will focus whether the masseurs performed the massage on Phing per the guidelines provided.

Meanwhile, Public Health Doctor of Udon Thani Province (PPHO) Dr. Somchai Choti Piyawatchawela mentioned that a team was sent to conduct an inspection however, the Udon Thani Hospital, overseeing the case found that the cause of death to be pneumonia and blood infection.

The hospital was unclear if the incident was related to the massage.

“Some shop owners have completed the 372-hour Thai massage training course, but it’s unclear whether the masseuses in the shop completed the full course.

“(Most) importantly, the 372-hour Thai massage course does not include neck twisting or risky techniques like that. The course does not recommend twisting the back or neck,” Somchai was quoted as saying.