Wet cupping practices draw up the skin and blood. Then a small scalpel creates small incisions so that a second suction can draw out the blood. The cuts are then treated with standard antibiotics and bandages as a safeguard against infection.

Modern cupping sessions, both wet and dry, last up to 15 minutes.

Later in history, such famous doctors as Galen, Ambroise Pare and Paracelsus practiced cupping. In Europe, barbers who practiced surgery and bath house workers were also skilled in the art.

The Benefits of Cupping

Cupping advocates believe the practice can increase blood flow, thereby promoting healing in a range of ailments. While traditional Western medicine remains skeptical that cupping does much of anything, a 2012 study by the medical journal PLoS ONE claimed that cupping, in combination with acupuncture and medications, could be effective in treating such varied diseases as herpes zoster, acne, facial paralysis and cervical spondylosis. Australian and Chinese researchers took their information from 134 studies published between 1992 and 2010 on cupping.

Modern Advocates

While cupping is regarded skeptically in many traditional medicine areas, its advocates take on a quasi-religious fervor in its support.