http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gua_Sha
Gua sha involves repeated pressured strokes over
lubricated skin with a smooth edge. Commonly a ceramic Chinese soup spoon was used, or a well worn
coin, even honed animal bones, water buffalo horn, or jade. A
simple metal cap with a rounded edge is commonly used.
In cases of fatigue from heavy work, a piece of ginger root
soaked in rice wine is sometimes used to rub down the spine from
head to feet.
The smooth edge is placed against the oiled skin surface,
pressed down firmly, and then moved down the muscles—hence the term
tribo-effleurage (i.e.,
friction-stroking)—or along the pathway of the acupuncture meridians,
along the surface of the skin, with each stroke being about
4–6 inches long.
This causes extravasation of blood from the peripheral
capillaries and may result in sub-cutaneous blemishing (ecchymosis), which usually takes 2–4 days to fade.
Sha rash does not represent capillary rupture (petechiae) as in bruising, as is evidenced by
the immediate fading of the markings to echymosis, and the rapid
resolution of sha as compared to bruising. The color of
sha varies according to the severity of the patient's
blood stasis—which may correlate with the nature, severity and type
of their disorder—appearing from a dark blue-black to a light pink,
but is most often a shade of red.
Practitioners tend to follow the tradition they were taught to
obtain sha: typically using either gua sha or
fire cupping. The techniques are
sometimes used together.
