What is cupping and how can it help me?
What is cupping?
Relieve Your Aches and Pains with Cupping Treatments
Cupping is a form of pain relief treatment that has been utilized for centuries, primarily in acupuncture, that is now gaining popularity in Western medicine. It’s use has increased in recent years as more patients move away from opioid medications and injections.
In physical therapy, it is used to increase relaxation and decrease pain by improving blood flow and reducing inflammation.
Cupping is described as a “tissue distraction release” technique. This works to increase the release of neural tissues, fascia, skin, ligaments, muscles, and tendons. Cupping works to relax the muscles, release trigger points, stimulate lymphatic flow, increase local circulation, and release scar tissue adhesion.
Cupping is now frequently used to address chronic neck pain, low back pain, and fibromyalgia.
Click here to request an appointment with Wellworks Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation in Glendale, CA to find out more about how cupping may be a fit for you!
How Does Cupping Work?
Our Glendale, CA physical therapists will use rubber pumps and plastic cups to create a vacuum. This vacuum causes the skin to rise and the blood vessels to expand. The dilation and rupture of the superficial capillaries results in red/purple marks. This is believed to result in discomfort in the target tissues by stimulating inhibitory neural pathways, increase pressure pain thresholds, and impact local metabolic activity.
What Does Cupping Feel Like?
In the first phase, physical therapists will utilize static cups to help increase blood flow. For patients who experience a positive response, cupping can be incorporated into an exercise regime to maximize the soft tissue response.
Most patients will describe the sensation like a large pinch. We use cups where we can specialize the pressure to every patient’s needs so that the experience is not painful but relaxing instead.
The Current Science Supporting Cupping
Despite its long history, cupping is newer to Western medicine. It takes years for a treatment to systematically validated. The scientific process requires multiple papers with strong scientific methodology, data collection, and analysis to conclude if interventions are appropriate.
There is a less published evidence that supports cupping use, especially in comparison to other treatment interventions like exercise. It is most supported for treatment for chronic pain conditions. Please feel free to read the peer reviewed papers listed below that include low-moderate grade evidence to support its use.
At Wellworks, we follow the science; and the science supports exercise as a primary treatment plan. However, we also acknowledge that patients do benefit from modalities to address their acute pain in a way that therapeutic exercise sometimes cannot. We are happy to offer cupping services for patients who wish to try alternatives to the traditional pain management like opoid medications and injections.
Discover how cupping can benefit you today
The best way to know if cupping is a good fit for you is to speak with one of our medical professionals. Schedule an appointment with our physical therapists in our Glendale, CA physical therapy office to discuss treatment plans.
Turk JL, Allen E. Bleeding and cupping. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 1983;65:128-131.
Rozenfeld E, Kalichman L. New is the well-forgotten old: The use of dry cupping in musculoskeletal medicine. J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2016;20:173-178.
Arslan M, Gokgoz N, Dane S. The effect of traditional wet cupping on shoulder pain and neck pain: A pilot study. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2016;23:30-33.
Musial F, Michalsen A, Dobos G. Functional chronic pain syndromes and naturopathic treatments: neurobiological foundations. Forsch Komplementmed. 2008;15:97-103.
Lauche R, Cramer H, Hohmann C, et al. The effect of traditional cupping on pain and mechanical thresholds in patients with chronic nonspecific neck pain: a randomised controlled pilot study. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:429718.
Markowski A, Sanford S, Pikowski J, Fauvell D, Cimino D, Caplan S. A pilot study analyzing the effects of Chinese cupping as an adjunct treatment for patients with subacute low back pain on relieving pain, improving range of motion, and improving function. J Altern Complement Med. 2014;20:113-117.
Emerich M, Braeunig M, Clement HW, Ludtke R, Huber R. Mode of action of cupping--local metabolism and pain thresholds in neck pain patients and healthy subjects. Complement Ther Med. 2014;22:148-158.
AlBedah A, Khalil M, Elolemy A, et al. The Use of Wet Cupping for Persistent Nonspecific Low Back Pain: Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial. J Altern Complement Med. 2015;21:504-508.
Chi LM, Lin LM, Chen CL, Wang SF, Lai HL, Peng TC. The Effectiveness of Cupping Therapy on Relieving Chronic Neck and Shoulder Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2016;2016:7358918.
Lauche R, Langhorst J, Dobos GJ, Cramer H. Clinically meaningful differences in pain, disability and quality of life for chronic nonspecific neck pain - a reanalysis of 4 randomized controlled trials of cupping therapy. Complement Ther Med. 2013;21:342-347.
Michalsen A, Bock S, Ludtke R, et al. Effects of traditional cupping therapy in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. J Pain. 2009;10:601-608.
Teut M, Kaiser S, Ortiz M, et al. Pulsatile dry cupping in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee - a randomized controlled exploratory trial. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2012;12:184.
Kim JI, Lee MS, Lee DH, Boddy K, Ernst E. Cupping for treating pain: a systematic review. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2011;2011:467014.
Ernst E. Testing traditional cupping therapy. J Pain. 2009;10:555.
Haik MN, Alburquerque-Sendin F, Moreira RF, Pires ED, Camargo PR. Effectiveness of physical therapy treatment of clearly defined subacromial pain: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials. Br J Sports Med. 2016.
Marinko LN, Chacko JM, Dalton D, Chacko CC. The effectiveness of therapeutic exercise for painful shoulder conditions: a meta-analysis. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2011;20:1351-1359.
Camarinos J, Marinko L. Effectiveness of manual physical therapy for painful shoulder conditions: a systematic review. J Man Manip Ther. 2009;17:206-215.
Lewis J, McCreesh K, Roy JS, Ginn K. Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy: Navigating the Diagnosis-Management Conundrum. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2015;45:923-937.
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