Cupping therapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses suction as a way of manipulating tissue. The practice dates back thousands of years and is utilized in countries all over the globe. It is especially popular in China, which has employed cupping therapy in hospitals since the 1950s.
With cupping therapy, special suction devices, or “cups,” are placed on the skin, creating a vacuum that stretches the underlying connective tissue, or fascia, in the treatment area. Dynamic cupping therapy combines the use of cups with dynamic massage-like movements, lifting the muscles and stretching them with suction.