Cupping Therapy

Cupping therapy is an ancient form of alternative medicine in which a local suction is created on the skin and soft tissue; it is believed to mobilise the circulation promoting healing.

Dry cupping procedure commonly involves creating a small area of low air pressure next to the skin.

The low air pressure required may be created by heating the cup and the air inside or by mechanically suctioning the air out with a pump.

The cups can be plastic or glass and of various shapes. The number of cups used depends on the size of the area being treated.

I prefer to lubricate the skin in order to move the cup if the tissue needs to be treated more intensively.

Depending on the specific treatment, skin marking is common after the cups are removed.
This may be a simple red ring that disappears quickly; or dark circles may appear where the cups were placed due to rupture of the capillaries just under the skin, but are not the same as a bruise caused by blunt-force trauma.