subject: Cupping A Regime in Unani System of Medicine [print this page] Cupping A Regime in Unani System of Medicine
Cupping in Arabic is known as "Hijamah" it is a special technique of evacuation used in the treatment of certain lethal diseases. A treatment done by producing partial vacuum in the cup glasses placed on the body surface by heat or suction, in order to evacuate morbid material or to divert the material from the deeper tissues or diseased part.
Aim
It helps in moving the morbid material from the affected place that is called imala-e mavaad.
Eliminate the morbid material from the affected side by letting down the sufficient quantity of akhlaat, known as tanqiya-e mawad there by relieving pain and inflammation
Stimulates the organs and increases local blood circulation and carries away the morbid material responsible for disease that is known as imal-e mawad.
Historical back ground of cupping
The earliest use of cupping that is recorded is from the famous Taoist alchemist and herbalist, Ge Hong (281-341 A.D.) The method was described in his book A Hand book of Prescriptions for Emergencies" in which the cups were actually animal horns, used for drainig pustules. As a result of using horns, cupping has been known as jiaofa, or the horn technique. In a tang dynasty book, Necessities of a Frontier Official" Cupping was prescribed for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis. More recently, Zhao Xuemin, during the Qing dynasty, wrote Supplement to Outline of Materia Medica, including an entre chapter on "fire jar qi" (huoquan qi) in it, he emphasized the value of this treatment, using cups made of bamboo or pottery, in alleviating headache of wind-cold type, bi syndrome of wind origin, dizziness, and abdominal pain. The cups could be placed over acupuncture needles for these treatments. One of the traditional indications for cupping is dispelling cold in the channels. This indication is partly the result of applying hot cups. For example, bamboo cups would be boiled in an herbal decoction just prior to applying to the skin. Both liquid cupping and cupping over an acupuncture needle are favored for treatment of arthralgia. Cupping also is thought to dispel cold by virtue of its ability to release external pathogenic factors, including invasion of wind, damp, and cold.
Type of Cupping Jars
(1) Glass cup jars, (2) Bambro cup jars, (3) Pottery cup jars
Types of Cupping
a) On basis of blood letting-
Hijamat Bish Shurt (Wet Cupping or Cupping with Scarification)
Hijamat Bila Shurt (Dry Cupping or Cupping without Scarification)
b) On basis of method-
Hijamat-e Nariyah (Cupping with fire)
Hijamat-e Ghair Nariyah (Cupping without fire)
Sites and procedures of Hijamat
S.No.
Points of Application
Uses
1.
Nape of the neck
Heaviness of eyelids, Itch of eyes.
2.
Shoulders
Pain in the upper arms and Throat
3.
The leg (Hijamate saaq)
Cleanses blood, Provokes menstrual flow
4.
Over the joints
Inflammatory masses in the upper part of thigh
5.
Front of thigh
Orchitis, Leg ulcers
6.
In inner of thigh
Poadagra, Piles, Bladder, Renal congestion
7.
In popliteal space
Aneurysm, Septic ulcers of leg and foot
8.
Over malleoli (ankle bone)
Sciatica, Piles, Podagra and retained menses
9.
Over the outer side of hips
Inguinal hernia
10.
Under the chin
Cleanses of the teeth, facse, throat, head and jaws
11.
Over the ankle
Amenorrhoea, sciatica and gout
IndicationCupping may be indicated in the following conditions-
Amraz-e Ain (Eye diseases)- like Postural keratitis, staphyloma.
