The history of the massage in China dates from the Shang Dinasty in the year 1700 BC. According to historical data it was used to handle children deseases and digestive discomfort in adults.
The massage flourished all over China untill the Qing Dinasty, age in which was forbidden along with other chinese culture practices. After the cultural revolution it was restored, with other medical traditions, and it was included in the actual system of traditional chinese medicine universities named as Tui Na instead of AN Mo as are called the massages in general.
There is a wide range of manual techniques used in Tui Na, for example, push, pressure, rotations, etc. Tui Na therapy can also use joints movilizing massages, soft movements and stretching, as well as Qi tecniques. The last ones (also called Qi Gong treatments), use very little physical manipulation. They focus in generating and using Qi to achieve a therapeutic effect. Using massage and Tui Na tecniques, Qi flows harmoniously through the systems of body chanels, allowing the body to heal itself.
Nowadays Tui Na is one of the three most important elements in the Chinese Traditional Medicine together with the acupuncture and herbal studies. These three therapies use the same theory and health and desease principles. However even though share the same basis of energetic theory, each one uses different means to influence the individual energy towards health. The three therapies try to achieve the same results through different techniques.

While western massages most of which focus on relaxation, particularly the muscles, Tui Na stands out as general relaxation to fight stress, but mainly to deal with a whole range of physical conditions. Thats why Tui Na is sometimes translated as Chinese Medical Massage.