Dry cupping therapy combined with conventional therapy does not provide additional benefits over conventional therapy alone in patients with non-specific chronic low back pain: a randomized trial

TL;DR

This study found that adding dry cupping therapy to standard treatment for chronic low back pain does not improve outcomes compared to standard treatment alone.

Contribution

The study is the first randomized trial to evaluate the added benefit of dry cupping therapy in non-specific chronic low back pain.

Findings

No additional benefit was observed in pain intensity when dry cupping was added to conventional therapy.

Both groups showed similar improvements in disability and pressure pain thresholds.

The results suggest dry cupping does not enhance standard treatment outcomes for chronic low back pain.

Abstract

Chronic non-specific low back pain (CNLBP) is a complex and heterogeneous condition, and it is necessary to explore new treatment approaches. We evaluated whether the addition of dry cupping therapy to guideline‑based conventional therapy would further improve clinical outcomes in CNLBP.

Thirty-six patients with CNLBP were recruitedand randomly divided into two groups: the control group and the intervention group. The intervention group received cupping therapy in addition to the control group (core stabilization exercises, spinal manipulation and education) for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain intensity. Secondary outcomes were the Roland Morris disability questionnaire (RMDQ), and pressure pain thresholds (PPT) at bilateral Shenshu (BL23), Qihaishu (BL24), and Dachangshu (BL25) acupuncture points.

At week 4 the between‑group difference in resting pain was trivial (median difference 0.0 cm, 95% CI − 1.0 to 1.0). Neither clinically important nor statistically significant differences were detected in disability or PPTs. Both groups improved substantially from baseline.

In this randomized trial, adding dry cupping to conventional therapy offered no additional benefit over conventional therapy alone for pain, disability or PPT in CNLBP. Larger, multicentre trials with longer follow‑up and standardized negative pressures are warranted.

Trial registration: ChiCTR2300069398, http://www.chictr.org.cn, Registration Date: March 15, 2023.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12998-025-00588-x.

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