Volume 23, May 2016, Pages 30–33
Abstract
Objectives
Wet
cupping therapy (WCT) is a traditional complementary method recommended
to decrease the symptoms of a lot of diseases and used in the treatment
of pain syndromes. In this pilot study, the possible effects of wet
cupping therapy on nonspecific neck and upper shoulder pain were
investigated.
Methods
Sixty
one eligible volunteer participants with nonspecific neck and upper
shoulder pain for at least 3 months were allocated. The Numeric Rating
Scale (NRS) was used to assess pain scores. Pain scores were recorded
before and after wet cupping therapy.
Results
The
mean scores of neck pain in study group were 7.02 (SD = 1.8) before and
3.70 (SD = 2.2) after cupping therapy. The decrease of pain scores
between pre- and post-test was statistically significant (p < 0.05).
Discussion
It
can be stated that WCT has potential therapeutic effect in nonspecific
neck and upper shoulder pain. Future full-scale randomized controlled
trials will be needed to provide firm evidence of the effectiveness of
this intervention.
Keywords
- Cupping;
- Neck;
- Shoulder;
- Pain
© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
