Immediate effect of interscapular cupping on blood pressure, oxygen saturation, pulse rate and chest expansion in sedentary smoker students

Objectives

Increased sympathetic stimulation in smokers may be a risk factor for pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases. This study was conducted to assess the immediate effect of interscapular cupping on blood pressure (BP), oxygen (O2) saturation, chest expansion (CE), pulse rate (PR) in sedentary male smoker students.

Methods

Forty sedentary male smoker students– aged 18–25 years -were divided randomly into two equal numbered groups; wet cupping (WC) and dry cupping (DC) groups. Systolic and diastolic BP, upper and lower CE, O2 saturation and PR were measured immediately before and after a single cupping session in both groups.

Results

Both WC and DC types showed improvements in all measurements with a high statistically significant difference (p<0.05).

Conclusions

Interscapular cupping enhanced CE, O2 saturation, BP and PR in sedentary male smoker students.

Effects of diaphragm respiration exercise on pulmonary function of male smokers in their twenties

[Purpose] We investigated how diaphragm respiration exercises can affect pulmonary function in long-term male smokers in their twenties. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-eight healthy males between 20 and 29 years of age were randomly divided into an experimental and a control group (14 members each). The experiment was conducted during 30 min sessions, 3 times a week for 4 weeks. The experimental group performed diaphragm respiration exercises and the control group performed exercises using MOTOmed. Pulmonary function (tidal volume, breathing capacity, inspiratory reserve volume, inspiratory capacity, and expiratory reserve volume) was evaluated and analyzed before and after the experiment. [Results] Our results revealed significant increases in tidal volume, inspiratory reserve volume, inspiratory capacity, and breathing capacity in the experimental group. These increases were greater in the experimental group than in the control group. [Conclusion] In our study, the experimental group which performed diaphragm respiration exercises showed a greater improvement in pulmonary function compared with the control group. It is hypothesized that greater improvement in pulmonary function is expected if diaphragm respiration exercises are implemented taking into account the age of the smokers.