These days, many practitioners use a glass "cup" which actually looks more like a miniature fish bowl. A few years ago Tobey Paltrow sho up in public sporting the distinctive circular marks the technique leaves on the skin, but I haven't seen much reference to it lately. A modern variation makes use of plastic cups with built in check-valves. I find the glass cups to be more comfortable for the patient, especially if they will be used in a moving fashion to cover a large area. It's not used a lot in the West and not well known here in the States.

As the air inside the cup cools, it reduces in volume.

A hand pump is then used to suck out some air and create the vacuum. An Introduction to Cupping There is an interesting treatment technique in Traditional Chinese Medicine known as cupping. A vacuum is created by quickly flashing an open flame inside the cup, just before it is placed on the skin.

Cupping uses a vessel to create a vacuum as it is pressed to the skin, stretching the tissues and creating enhanced circulation in the area treated.