Wet Cupping Therapy Improves Health Related Quality of Life: A Self-Controlled Interventional Study

Objectives: Wet cupping therapy is an ancient treatment method which has been an integral part of Traditional Anatolian Medicine . In the current study we aimed to assess the efficacy of wet cupping therapy on health-related quality of life in healthy volunteers. Materials and Methods: This was a single arm pre-test and post-test interventional study conducted in Traditional and Complementary Medicine Clinic of Karabuk Education and Research Hospital between August 1, 2017 and August 1, 2018. Fifty-three healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. They received three wet cupping therapy sessions once every month for three months (On 0, 30, and 60 days). WHOQOL-BREF-TR questionnaire was applied to all participants both before the sessions and after the third one. Wilcoxon signed rank test was employed to compare pre and post test scores. A p value <0.05 assumed to be statistically significant. All analyzes were carried out using Minitab 17 Statistical Software. Results : The study sample consisted of 26 female and 27 male subjects. Mean age was 43.68 ± 9.41 years. It was found 46.34 ± 9.78 years for females and 40.63± 8.43 years for males. Initial WHOQOL-BREF-TR scores regarding general health ( p<0.001 ) and the four domains which were physical ( p<0.001 ), psychological (p<0.001 ), social relations ( p<0.001 ) and the environmental domain (p<0.005 ) showed significant improvements after three WCT sessions Conclusion : Our results suggest that quality of life may be improved in healthy adults by wet cupping therapy.