TheGrinchSR wrote:Quote:

The effectiveness of coin rubbing is a really complex issue. According to numerous alternative healthcare websites and articles, cao gio is safe and its efficacy is only verified by testimonials of Southeast Asians who practice this form of healing. An extensive search of scientific articles was done by Dr. Tara Sullivan and she found no articles that verified its effectiveness. Sullivan states, “coining is a cultural folk remedy with no basis in scientific evidence (Sullivan, 2005).” Even though coining has no scientific basis, there were numerous articles set up in websites that concern ethnomedicine and cultural relativity because coining has been highly criticized by western doctors.

For more information on complications, see:

Amsh Amshel CE, Caruso D. (2002). Vietnamese ‘Coining’: A Burn Report and Literature Review. J Burn Care Rehabil 21(2), 112-114.

Davis R. (2000). Cultural Health Care or Child Abuse? The Southeast Asian Practice of Cao Gio. J Am Acad Nurse Practitioners 12(3), 89-95.

Rampini SK, Schneemann M, Rentsch K, Bachli EB. (2002). Camphor Intoxication After Cao Gio (Coin Rubbing). The Journal of the American Medical Association 288(1),

FYI I wrote a bit about this on K440 last year on a thread entitled "whipping markings". My comments reproduced below:

For anyone who is interested or wondered about the efficacy of coining (Koh kjol, Cạo gió, Gua sha) some interesting research here. The Arya Nielsen paper is particularly interesting.

In the last decade, research has begun to clarify how Gua sha works. Gua sha’s therapeutic petechiae represent blood cells that have extravasated in the capillary bed and measure as a significant increase in surface microperfusion. As this blood is reabsorbed, the breakdown of hemoglobin upregulates HO-1, CO, biliverdin and bilirubin, which are anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective. Studies show the anti-inflammatory effect of Gua sha has a therapeutic impact in inflammatory conditions, such as active chronic hepatitis, where liver inflammation indicates organ breakdown that over time can lead to premature death. The physiology of HO-1 may also explain Gua sha’s anti-inflammatory effect in other responsive clinical conditions, such as fever, cough, asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, mastitis, gastritis, musculoskeletal and other painful conditions presenting as neck pain, back pain, migraine, postherpetic neuralgia and others. Gua sha’s anti-inflammatory and immune protective properties are important for practitioners to understand and be able to communicate to their patients as well as to other health care practitioners.**( Arya Nielsen, PhD
http://69.195.124.112/~guashaco/wp-cont ... ielsen.pdf

A first-of-its-kind randomized, controlled trial conducted in Germany
Gua sha is an interesting and ancient therapy for musculoskeletal pain, but its physiological mechanisms of action remain largely undefined. All patients in this current study had very long-standing chronic neck pain, and following a single treatment the Gua sha group had a very meaningful 65% reduction in pain compared with only 14% in the control group. These results are impressive; however, several points need consideration…
http://updates.pain-topics.org/2011/02/ ... ronic.html

Paper here:
Effectiveness of traditional Chinese "gua sha" therapy in patients with chronic neck pain: a randomized controlled trial.
Braun M1, Schwickert M, Nielsen A, Brunnhuber S, Dobos G, Musial F, Lüdtke R, Michalsen A. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21276190

had my first try at this treatment last night lol

Looks like another tattoo.

Username Taken wrote:To come up dark red like that would mean that you're feeling a bit off. Like general aches and pains for no particular reason, aka, feeling like shit.

I bet you feel much better already!

yeah felt awful the past few days, going to have a night in with some anti biotics tonight to flush the system out lol

Jamie_Lambo wrote:

Username Taken wrote:To come up dark red like that would mean that you're feeling a bit off. Like general aches and pains for no particular reason, aka, feeling like shit.

I bet you feel much better already!

yeah felt awful the past few days, going to have a night in with some anti biotics tonight to flush the system out lol

I take it Ho Chi Minh got the best of you? Just did a dose of Kpak (anzythromycin) this weekend, good stuff but lingers five or so days after the last pill so gotta keep that in mind.

Raybull wrote:

Jamie_Lambo wrote:

Username Taken wrote:To come up dark red like that would mean that you're feeling a bit off. Like general aches and pains for no particular reason, aka, feeling like shit.

I bet you feel much better already!

yeah felt awful the past few days, going to have a night in with some anti biotics tonight to flush the system out lol

I take it Ho Chi Minh got the best of you? Just did a dose of Kpak (anzythromycin) this weekend, good stuff but lingers five or so days after the last pill so gotta keep that in mind.

yeah i always take anzythromycin, its great stuff, yeah it stays in your system like 72 hours or something, i always take 4 500mg tablets (2grams/2000mg) in one sitting and have a big flush out, did it last night, its not a very pleasant experience but fuck taking anti biotics over a course of a few days and drag it out, i use anzythromycin because they are strong and good for a quick one dose hit

Jamie_Lambo wrote:had my first try at this treatment last night lol

Did you feel better after did it?

Looks like the tatoo on his back is spreading its wings to fly outta there.

prahkeitouj wrote:

Jamie_Lambo wrote:had my first try at this treatment last night lol

Did you feel better after did it?

yes it was good, i enjoyed the experience, ive always wanted to do it