Photoacoustic assessment of microenvironment parameter changes during facial cupping therapy

As a traditional Chinese medicine practice, cupping therapy has been widely used for thousands of years to promote blood circulation and release symptoms of some diseases. The actual effect, however, has been debatable due to the lack of scientific evidence. Aiming to objectively assess the treatment effect, in this study we introduce optical-resolution photoacoutic microscopy to monitor the structural and functional changes of microenvironment parameters pre- and post-cupping through facial cups. Whilst further investigation is in demand, this pilot study provides a new imaging perspective to understand the mechanism and evaluate the effect of cupping therapy.