Cupping is a special method of applying acupressure by creating a vacuum on the patient's skin. In the old days, bamboo cups were used. A small flame was used to create a vacuum and then the cup was quickly placed on the skin.

 

It takes great skill for a practitioner to control the amount of suction caused by the flame.  This skill is developed through learning proper timing between the use of the fire to create the vacuum inside the cup and the speed at which the cup is placed on the skin. 

 

Bamboo cups, however, have fallen into disuse in the modern age, due to sterilization concerns.  Modern cups tend to be made of either glass or plastic. Glass cups are put on the traditional way (using fire), but many of the plastic cups are fixed with a one-way valve and a pump is used to create the vacuum. In this way, the practitioner can control the amount of suction created by the cup. 

 

Therapeutically, cups are either placed directly on affected areas, on acupuncture points, or (with the help of massage oil to lubricate the skin) are moved along muscles or meridians.  Cupping relieves stagnant Qì by pulling both blood and Qì from an affected area or channel to the surface. It can be effectively used to treat a number of problems including, but not limited to: the common cold, bronchitis, asthma, and musculoskeletal pain.