Hijama (Arabic: حجامة lit. "sucking") is the name in Arab traditional medicine for wet cupping, where blood is drawn by vacuum from a small skin incision for therapeutic purposes.[1] Hijama is generally performed by Muslims as it is a form of medicine specifically mentioned and encouraged by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Among other hadith, it is mentioned in that recorded by Muhammad al-Bukhari (5263) and Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (2952), saying "The Hijama is the best of your remedies" (خير ما تداويتم به الحجامة).
Bloodletting has been conclusively shown to be of no medical benefit in most cases; use of bloodletting as a traditional remedy is not based on evidence, and can be actively harmful.[2]
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Hijama can be performed anywhere on the body, often at the site of an ache or pain in order to ease or alleviate it. A more conservative approach[3] warns against over use of cupping and suggests only that six optimal points on the body are all that is required to clean the entire cardiovascular system. The back of the head, two shoulders corresponding to the acupuncture heart position, the tail or small of the back, and the two inner ankles.
The location is first shaved, if necessary, to ensure a tight seal with the cup. The mouth of a cup (metal, glass and plastic cups are generally used, although traditionally horns were used) is placed on the skin at the site chosen for cupping. Then a tight seal is created. The traditional method was to burn a small piece of paper or cotton inside the vessel, so that the mouth of the cup clings to the skin. Some practitioners now use a machine instead, although others strictly adhere to the Prophetic method with the use of fire, both for sterility and the benefits or properties from the element of fire itself. The cup is left to cling to the skin for a few minutes, then it is lifted off and a couple of very small incisions are made in the skin. The cup is then put back as it was before until the flow of blood subsides.[4]