Acute Effects on Some Performance Parameters of The Dry Cupping Therapy by Soccer Players

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to examine the acute effect of dry cupping therapy applied to the hamstring muscle in footballers on flexibility, jumping, strength and range of motion.Materials and Methods: 25 male athletes with an average age of 18.80 ± 0.41 in the U-19 football team, one of the infrastructure teams of Yukatel Denizlispor club, voluntarily participated in this study. Soccer players first evaluated flexibility, range of motion, jumping and strength tests bilaterally. All athletes were administered a 10-minute dry cupping along the muscle bilaterally to the hamstring muscle after their initial change. Then all initial assessments were repeated and data recorded.Results: Dry cupping therapy was found to have a statistically significant effect on the flexibility parameter of the hamstring muscle and bilateral evaluated knee flexion and hip extension range of motion (p>0.05). Dry cupping therapy was found to have no statistically significant effect on the strength parameters of knee flexion and hip extension, which were evaluated bilaterally and jumping parameters (p>0.05).Conclusion: We concluded that, dry cupping therapy is a useful method as a non-invasive, easy-to-apply and economical complementary medicine application to increase flexibility and range of motion parameters in football players.