Hirudotherapy: placing leeches at home, what it treats, pros and cons

Hirudotherapy has a rather long history. For about two thousand years, bloodletting was considered the most effective method treatment of many ailments, among which the central place was occupied by diseases caused by heart and vascular pathology. By releasing a certain amount of blood from the patient, it was possible to stop the attack and thus help the person. However, a puncture or cut in a vein in those distant times was a real surgery, which could only be performed by a qualified specialist. The use of leeches turned out to be a simpler and fairly affordable way to treat diseases (and not only heart diseases) by extracting “unnecessary” or “bad”, as was considered in the Middle Ages, blood.

Dislike for the “exotic”, which some people consider a leech, makes many patients completely reject hirudotherapy, although others, on the contrary, love it very much.

A little history

Calling the leech a real living pharmacy, many scientists doctors thereby recognizing its unique medicinal properties. The reputation of this scary-looking worm-like animal has been formed over many centuries. Scientists who thoroughly study the path of the leech as a remedy claim that the use of a “live needle” or “live syringe” for bloodletting, as the leech was later called, began in Ancient India and represents one of the directions of Ayurveda.

setting of leeches, engraving, 19th century.

The leech was used by the “father of medicine” Hippocrates, the Roman physician Galen, it was used by the great scientist Avicenna (Ibn Sina), the best healers of antiquity treated all diseases with its saliva and, thus, it quietly but safely reached the Renaissance. The most widespread use of hirudotherapy occurred in the 17th-18th centuries; leech was used for, tuberculosis, gonorrhea,. In general, under different and very distant pathological conditions.

By the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th century, ideas about many things began to change and the leech was forgotten for some time. In Russia, the introduction of hirudotherapy in medical practice The famous doctor M. Ya. Mudrov was actively involved.

In the middle of the 19th century, the leech gradually faded into the background and began to be considered a past stage in medicine, although bloodletting still leads among other therapeutic measures, but is used for slightly different purposes and by other methods. Meanwhile, the famous surgeon N.I. Pirogov, having his own convictions on this matter, continued to use these worms to stop bleeding, for fractures, tumors and others surgical diseases. Especially, the leech turned out to be useful during the Crimean War, in which N.I. Pirogov was a participant (and the chief surgeon of Sevastopol).

However, oblivion did not last long and at the end of the 19th century the study of this animal began seriously. A substance that prevents blood clotting (anticoagulant) was isolated from the leech extract, and an enzyme (hirudin) was obtained from its saliva, thanks to which the leech has therapeutic effect. This was in 1884. This is how it appeared medical leech(Hirudo medicinalis), which differs in its properties from different types worm-like animals living in bodies of water. At the same time, the production of pharmaceuticals based on hirudin.

Until the 70s of the last century, jars with swarming black-brown worms could be seen in outpatient clinics and health centers, although they were placed less often. Hirudotherapy remained a priority in rural areas, where advanced technologies at that time did not reach, or, conversely, in large scientific centers, where eminent scientists worked who did not change their views on hirudotherapy (therapist G. A. Zakharyin, ophthalmologist V. P. Filatov). Scientific formation bdellotherapy really began in the second half of the 20th century.

Return of the medicinal leech

The new birth of hirudotherapy falls on difficult times for Russia and former republics USSR times - “dashing 90s”. The industry, including the pharmaceutical industry, is in decline, but it needs treatment. So we remembered folk remedies and alternative methods of treatment. To give new life hirudotherapy, people who were especially active and knowledgeable in this regard began to create special “farms” for raising unique animals. Over time, these small “farms” grew into large certified biofactories that supply entire regions with live anticoagulants, which now allows people who are well versed in this method treatment and able to handle the medicinal bloodsucker.

Meanwhile, the rapid development of hirudotherapy in the 90s of the last century is explained not only by the decline of the economy and the emergence of various farms of all stripes. By that time, considerable experience had been accumulated in medicine. The influence of many synthetically obtained medicines on the human body with long-term use. It turned out that:

A very common anticoagulant, heparin, sometimes causes complications in the form of necrosis of subcutaneous fat;
Antibiotics lead to the development of candidiasis;
Hormonal drugs have a lot of contraindications, among which are indicated.

In short, different medicines obtained chemically, give theirs side effects: allergic reactions, dysfunction individual organs and entire systems, sometimes very heavy, so scientists increasingly began to lean towards unconventional methods treatment (where possible), one of which (and the best) is hirudotherapy.

Hirudotherapy is currently used quite widely, because leeches have again received the right to participate in the healing process on an equal basis with traditional methods of treatment.

Properties of saliva in which it is found large number biologically active substances (BAS) can be used independently or to complement other measures, primarily as for the treatment of cardiovascular pathology.

In secret salivary glands leeches, except hirudin, which has an anti-clotting effect, contains a very important enzyme - hyaluronidase, dissolving hyaluronic acid, which, in turn, accumulates around the source of inflammation, protecting it. After the process subsides, hyaluronic acid“cements” the connective tissue, creating partitions that impede lymph and blood circulation, as well as reducing the functional abilities of tissues and organs. Hyaluronidase loosens these bridges, clearing the way for the movement of blood and lymph, which improves tissue nutrition and restores organ function, therefore, it can be used to influence adhesive processes. Taking into account the property of hyaluronidase, gynecologists often, using hirudotherapy, achieve positive results in the treatment of infertility, the cause of which was formed in fallopian tubes adhesions.

In addition to hirudin and hyaluronidase, the secretion of the salivary glands includes other compounds of proteins, lipids, carbohydrates that have high biological activity (histamine-like substance, prostaglandins, prostacyclins, platelet adhesion inhibitor, platelet activating factor inhibitor... and many other biologically active substances). It should be noted that not all components of the secretion secreted by a leech have yet been discovered and studied, that is, for scientific research Scientists have a large field of activity left in studying the properties of this small predator.

The secret is in her secret

The medicinal leech has a good understanding of human skin; it itself is able to find the areas responsible for the functions of certain organs, but real professionals involved in natural therapy do not allow it such “liberties.” Her behavior is regulated by a specialist, knowledgeable of location active points– he himself places the worm directly at the place of “work”. The leech, having attached itself to the designated point, takes a little blood (approximately 10 ml, but especially voracious ones can suck out 15 ml) and at the same time introduces biologically active substances (BAS) contained in its saliva into the wound, which act both locally and with the blood flow carries them to the organs in need of help.

It should be noted that biologically active substances act not only in affected areas, they affect the body as a whole:

Accelerate blood movement blood vessels and lymph by lymphatic;
Reduce (hirudin increases blood fluidity);
Slow down;
Prevents the formation and helps dissolve existing clots;
Improves microcirculation;
Helps saturate the blood with oxygen;
Normalize metabolic processes;
Improve tissue nutrition;
They have an anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect;
Stops spasm of cerebral, coronary and other vessels;
Reduce;
Promote the disappearance and resorption of infiltrates;
Increases the body's resistance unfavorable factors, including infectious diseases, improve appetite and sleep.

It is obvious that the effect of the secretion secreted by a leech on the body is multifaceted and varied. We will return to the diseases that these predators treat and to the contraindications, but it should be noted that, having weighed the benefits and harms of treatment with leeches, the benefits will undoubtedly outweigh. The wound made by this animal never festeres even when attacked by wild leeches when swimming in a dirty pond (the bactericidal effect of the secretion), in addition, the water in which the animals are kept begins to acquire bacteriostatic properties.

However, before starting detailed description all the advantages of this type annelids should be done important note. Although cases of infection viral hepatitis and HIV during hirudotherapy, as if, were not recorded, but in order to prevent troubles and mental anguish for the patient (what if I could become infected with something?) the animal must be destroyed after use. This means that each patient is treated with his own leeches; like syringes, it is better not to borrow them from a neighbor after he has already been injected. And one more point (it worries many) is why there should be different leeches for each patient: I don’t even want to think that an individual used to fight hemorrhoids will be reused to treat stomatitis. The patient must be confident that this is the first time a predator has tasted human blood. and this blood is his own.

Where to look for leeches?

leech farm

There is no certainty that we managed to convince the reader to be treated only by a naturotherapist (hirudotherapist) and, for sure, there will be people studying hirudotherapy on their own who are ready to solve problems on our own at home - you just need to find medicinal leeches. As mentioned above, medicinal animals are “produced” in special biofactories, which must comply with all the rules for the cultivation and maintenance of high-quality worms of this genus, which must be confirmed by a certificate. Manufacturers offer their “products” wholesale and retail medical institutions, pharmacies, individuals.

When choosing a remedy for hirudotherapy at home, you should be careful. Small specimens offered at low prices (50 rubles or less) may have been swimming in the nearby pond yesterday. These are wild leeches - therapeutic effect they will not give, but the money will be spent.

If you really want to, you can buy leeches at the pharmacy, although not all pharmaceutical establishments sell them. You will have to “get on the phone” or get information on the Internet (there is plenty of it there). The main thing for the reader to know is that he is buying a high-quality medicinal leech that has medicinal properties.

The benefits and harms of leeches and hirudotherapy

Advantages of a predator

And now, as promised, we will weigh the benefits and harms of treatment with leeches and try to give more detailed information, what diseases these small predators treat.

Ringed worms represented by this species (medicinal leech) solve many problems in the treatment of various pathological conditions. In its favor, we can cite a list of actions that it has when attached to human skin:

Based on this, let's try to list scope of application of medicinal leech, the main task of which is to treat vascular pathology:

Popular cream “Sofya” for varicose veins lower limbs;
Foot cream – “Leech extract”;
Cream-balm with leech extract;
Body gel "Girudovazin";
Body balm "Girudox";
“Piyavit” capsules (dry leech powder).

In any case, if the patient wants to buy an ointment (gel, cream, balm) at the pharmacy, then it is enough for him to say that he needs a leech extract or a medicine for varicose veins with hirudin. Most likely, he will be offered several options medicines for external use. By the way, treatment of varicose veins venous vessels lower extremities, gels and ointments with hirudin can be combined well with the use of compression hosiery.

There are also more serious drugs with hirudin, which are administered intravenously in a hospital setting. under control - "Lepirudin", For example. These drugs are intended to prevent thromboembolic complications; their use requires special caution and is not available to patients for use on their own initiative at home.

Synthetic analogues of hirudin “Girulog” and “Girugen” have also not yet been found wide application in Russia: they are quite expensive, besides, pharmaceutical forms, intended for oral administration, are just being developed. Therefore, the medical medicinal leech will be with us for a long time. As they say, cheap and cheerful.

Video: hirudotherapy in the “School of Health” program

Medical leeches: Fig. 13 - pharmacy; rice. 14 - therapeutic; rice. 15 - Persian. Rice. 16. Horse leech. Rice. 17. False horse leech. (On the left is a view of the leech from the dorsal side, on the right is a view from the ventral side.)

Medical leeches have long been used as a blood extractor and anticoagulant. They inhabit shallow, well-warmed water bodies of the Caucasus; feed on the blood of cattle. Medical leeches are bred at a biofactory in Moscow.

Horse leeches attack animals and people while swimming. They are dangerous because small young leeches can stick to the nasopharynx, pharynx, larynx, and cause difficulty breathing and swallowing; attempts to remove the leech instrumentally are usually unsuccessful and often end in throat bleeding. Surgery is required.

Medicinal uses of leeches(hirudotherapy) is based on the ability of leeches to secrete hirudin, which reduces, has an analgesic and anti-inflammatory effect. Leeches are widely used for a number of diseases: glaucoma, etc. Leeches are used in 4-6 pieces (less often up to 20), repeating occupational therapy after 5-6 days if necessary. Leeches are placed along the affected vessel for thrombophlebitis, on mastoid processes and to the back of the head in case of hypertension, in the area of the liver - in case of circulatory failure, in the area of the heart - in case of. The skin is pre-washed hot water without using odorous substances (soap, etc.) and wipe with cotton wool. The patient must lie down during the procedure. The leeches are placed in a test tube or glass, which is pressed tightly to the skin, and they wait until the leech sticks. If the leech does not stick for a long time, it needs to be replaced. Each leech sucks 10-15 ml of blood within 1/3-1 hour. If the leech does not fall off on its own or needs to be removed earlier, you should touch the head end of the leech with a swab moistened with alcohol. After the leech falls off, apply a sterile bandage to the wounds. The wounds bleed from 6 to 24 hours, sometimes longer. If the bleeding is too heavy and prolonged, use pressure bandage; with threatening bleeding, which is usually associated with reduced clotting blood of the patient, hemostatic agents are needed; in rare cases, braces are applied. Used leeches are not suitable for reuse. Leeches are contraindicated in case of anemia, exhaustion, diseases characterized by decreased blood clotting, hemolysis.

The therapeutic use of leeches (hirudotherapy, bdellotherapy) is based on the ability of leeches to have a variety of effects on the human body: hematopoietic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory and local anticoagulant. The mechanism of action of leeches has not been studied enough, however, hirudotherapy is widely used for hypertension, thrombophlebitis, angina pectoris and myocardial infarction, with congestive liver, diseases of the female genital area, neuritis and radiculitis, appendiceal infiltrates, furunculosis, glaucoma, etc. Leeches are contraindicated in cases of collapse, hypotension, anemia, increased bleeding and general exhaustion. Leeches are used in 4-12 pieces (rarely up to 20), repeating hirudotherapy after 5-6 days if necessary. Leeches are placed on the area of the organ that they want to influence: along the affected vessel with thrombophlebitis, on the mastoid processes and to the back of the head with hypertension, on the liver area with stagnation, on the heart area with angina pectoris, etc. The skin is first wiped with alcohol and washed with hot water. water without using odorous substances (soap, ether) and wipe with dry cotton wool. The leeches are placed in a glass or test tube, which is pressed tightly against the skin, and they wait for it to stick (Fig.). Each leech sucks 10-15 ml of blood within 1/2-1 hour. If the leech does not fall off for a long time, you need to sprinkle it with salt or touch the head end with a swab moistened with alcohol. After the leeches fall off, apply a sterile bandage to the wounds. The sores may continue to bleed for 6 to 24 hours. If this bleeding is profuse and prolonged, apply a pressure bandage; if bleeding threatens, the wound is sutured or a staple is placed on it. Used leeches are not suitable for reuse.

Attaching leeches: 1 - from a glass; 2 - from a test tube.

Rice. 1 - 3. Varieties of medicinal leeches. View from the dorsal (left) and ventral (right) sides. Rice. 1. Pharmacy medicinal leech. Rice. 2. Medicinal medicinal leech. Rice. 3. Persian medicinal leech. Rice. 4. Horse leech. View from the dorsal (left) and ventral (right) sides. Rice. 5. Life-size medical leech cocoon: a - whole; b - in a longitudinal section; c - in cross section. Rice. 6. False horse leech from the dorsal (left) and ventral (right) sides.

A special type of living creature is a medicinal leech; the properties of the substance it produces have been familiar to doctors since ancient times. Leeches have saved many people, and in modern medicine continue to be used with great efficiency.

Unpleasant-looking blood-sucking worms are a wonderful method of treating the most various ailments. Techniques developed by specialists make it possible to use leech in almost all areas of medical science, including cosmetology.

Leeches were used for treatment in the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Hellas, and the East. It is reliably known that the methods of treatment with leeches were described by the “father of medicine” Hippocrates and his eastern colleague Ibn Sina (Avicenna), and later by Galen. Tradition says that Queen Cleopatra was able to become pregnant and give birth to an heir to Caesar only after treatment with leeches, and before that she was infertile. IN medieval Europe Several million leeches were used annually for bloodletting.

At that time, the prevailing idea in medicine was that all diseases stem from the presence of “bad blood” in the body. If this blood is released, then the disease will leave the body. For bloodletting, the veins were either opened with a lancet or leeches were placed. Leeches helped cope with “bad blood” in hard-to-reach or delicate places. For example, they were placed on inflamed gums.

Then new concepts appeared in medicine, bloodletting lost popularity and the use of medicinal leech practically ceased. However, in our time, hirudotherapy (the so-called branch of medicine that deals with treatment with leeches) is experiencing a rebirth. The medical leech itself and the properties of the substances contained in its saliva are being carefully studied, and new methods are being developed for using this worm to treat a variety of diseases.

The salivary glands produce several most interesting substances that enter the patient's bloodstream when bitten. First of all, it is hirudin, which prevents blood clotting. Leech extract containing hirudin is used to make medicinal ointments and creams that help in the fight against blood stagnation, hematomas, varicose veins, and thrombosis. Bdellins and aeglins have an anti-inflammatory effect, and collagenase breaks down collagen fibers that form scars.

Leeches help in the treatment of chronic hemorrhoids, varicose veins, and thrombophlebitis. Applying a medicinal leech helps fight obesity, many gynecological problems, frostbite. Dermatologists use leech to treat furunculosis, eczema, baldness, and psoriasis. Urology welcomes the use of leeches to combat kidney and prostate diseases and male infertility. Hirudotherapy is actively used to treat vascular and heart diseases (including coronary heart disease, hypertension, myocardial infarction and its consequences).

Leeches are also used in dentistry, neurology, ophthalmology, and in the treatment of respiratory diseases. Cosmetologists use leech and extracts from it to combat cellulite, varicocele, and acne. And gastroenterologists successfully use hirudotherapy techniques to combat colitis, constipation, biliary tract diseases, gastroenteritis and other common diseases.

In China, almost all ailments have been treated with leeches for a long time. This amazing versatility is due to the fact that leeches cause more than just minor blood loss. The body reacts to substances produced by the salivary glands of the leech that enter the bloodstream by activating all protective and regenerative forces. It has been proven that leeches have an analgesic and disinfectant effect.

The blood is renewed, replacing the blood sucked out by the worms. hematopoietic organs is being produced new blood. Designed interesting and surprising effective techniques, combining modern medical knowledge with ancient healing systems. Leeches are applied to biologically active points, to certain areas of the energy channel system. The effect is the most unexpected and incredible.

However, such techniques, developed at the intersection of traditional and alternative medicine, are not recognized by all experts and may raise doubts. Hirudotherapy also has its opponents. This is due to the fact that a symbiont bacterium is always present in the leech’s stomach, which helps the worm retain the sucked blood unchanged in the stomach for years and digest it. Under unfavorable conditions, this bacterium can cause pathological processes. Usually, when a leech bites, bacteria do not enter the wound, since they live only in the stomach and are usually not present in the salivary glands or in the leech's mouth. Another danger of using a leech is associated with violations during the cultivation and use of a leech. Worms have not been caught in natural bodies of water for a long time.

Leeches are multiplied and grown in special biofactories, where the worms cannot become infected with any pathogenic microorganisms. In medicine, the reuse of a leech is prohibited, that is, after a single use for medical purposes, the leech must be destroyed. But unscrupulous workers occasionally allow themselves to break the rules and use leeches repeatedly. The worm may be ready to suck blood again 4-5 months after the last feeding, and at this time the blood of the previous “breadwinner” is still in its stomach.

Despite the fact that blood from the stomach cannot get into oral cavity leeches at the next feeding due to physiological characteristics structure of the worm, such reuse is considered unacceptable. The right thing for the hirudotherapist to do is to make sure that the used leeches are placed in a chloramine solution and killed.

Hirudotherapy has contraindications. It is not recommended to use leech to treat pregnant women and people suffering from anemia. Treatment with leeches for patients with hemophilia is strictly prohibited. There is also individual intolerance substances that make up the saliva of leeches.

Hirudotherapy is not a panacea. But treatment with leeches can be very effective. Unpleasant-looking worms can restore lost health, and it is worth paying attention to this method of treatment in consultation with your doctor.

Probably every person has known about leeches since childhood. They inhabit many ponds and lakes, hunt frogs, domestic animals, and can even attach themselves to a person who decides to swim in their habitat.

But is it really true that doctors use these terrible bloodsuckers, living in complete unsanitary conditions, to treat patients? Of course not. For these purposes, only medicinal leeches are used in medicine.

Let's figure out what medicinal leeches are. In total, there are almost four hundred types of leeches, but in medicine they are used only for medicinal purposes.

Species Hirudo medicinalis - medical leech, ringed water worm, ten to fifteen centimeters in length.

Medicinal leeches greenish-brown color. On the front and back parts Medicinal leeches have suckers on their bodies. An interesting fact is that the sucker located at the back is unchanged, in contrast to the front sucker, which appears only when necessary: to attach to the body of the victim or to move along surfaces. But leeches not only crawl, they are excellent swimmers, so they can overtake the victim in open water, when it does not touch the bottom at all.

Worth noting

Leeches, overtaking the victim, stick to the skin using the head suction cup, in the middle of which there is a mouth opening, and bite the skin, as if cutting with a knife. To do this, they serve three small plates in the mouth, on which there are hundreds of small teeth.

After medicinal leeches cut the epidermis, a special salivary secretion is released into the body. It contains active substances such as hirudin and histamine.

Hirudin(from the Latin "Hirudo", meaning leech) - an anticoagulant. It prevents blood clotting.
Histamine- causes local dilation of blood vessels.

Please note

Medicinal leeches used in modern hirudotherapy, absolutely “sterile”. They are grown in special biofactories.

There are four such leech farms in Russia: two of them are in the Moscow region, one in St. Petersburg and another in the Saratov region. Russia is the world's largest producer of medicinal leeches, producing almost six million per year.

But how long have people been using medicinal leeches?

The first mentions of the use of medicinal leeches appeared three thousand years ago during the time of the pharaohs. Medicinal leeches are also often mentioned in the writings of Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna.

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But the finest hour of leeches came in medieval Europe. From the end of the seventeenth to the beginning of the nineteenth century, medicinal leeches were considered a panacea by Europeans. Leeches replaced bloodletting. And this is quite understandable.

In order to open the vein and release the “bad blood”, a doctor was required, and many could not afford the financial luxury of systematic visits to a doctor. It was then that they came up with a natural biological method that replaced the bloodletting procedure. The leeches happily feasted on fresh blood, and they could easily be caught in any quantity in the nearest pond absolutely free of charge.

Having set a goal to achieve best results during treatment, the patient was given more than a hundred leeches at a time. But, alas, often the disease did not subside, or healing effect was not strong enough. Thus, by the beginning of the twentieth century, medicine had lost faith in hirudotherapy as a panacea, and interest in it had practically disappeared.

Medicinal leeches and their properties were remembered again only in the mid-twentieth century. It was at this time that scientists identified their main assistance in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

Now let’s figure out how treatment can be carried out, where and at what price to purchase medicinal leeches.

Worth noting

Treatment with leeches can be carried out both at home and on an outpatient basis. specialized clinics, they will have the same effect on the body. However, prices may vary significantly. The cost of treatment depends on the number of places where the procedure is performed, the number of medicinal leeches used, placement sites and the number of sessions required for treatment.

In medical centers, a course of hirudotherapy is selected for each patient strictly individually, depending on the diagnosis and complexity of the disease.

A doctor's consultation will cost an average of 500-1000 rubles. And one session of hirudotherapy costs on average 750-1800, depending on the number of medicinal leeches supplied and their location. It must be remembered that a course of hirudotherapy includes from four to twelve sessions.

Treatment with leeches can also be done at home. To do this, you need to undergo an examination with your doctor and identify a diagnosis of a possible disease. It is important to check with your doctor whether you have any contraindications for the use of medicinal leeches.

You can buy leeches at the pharmacy as much as you need. But it should be noted that in some pharmacies you should make a pre-order for medicinal leeches. One medical leech, depending on the region, costs from forty to two hundred rubles.

If you are going to place leeches on other than your arms and legs, then it is best to invite a hirudotherapist to your home. The fact is that medicinal leeches are quite frisky creatures and, if you place them, for example, on the face or in the tailbone area, then they can easily get inside the body and, sticking there, become a serious problem, and in some cases can be deadly . Therefore, it is better to play it safe and invite a specialist, under whose supervision the session will take place.

Placement of one leech by a hirudotherapist on the skin will cost from one hundred fifty to five hundred rubles. Placing a medicinal leech on the mucous membrane, in the anal area or on the female genital organs costs on average from five hundred to a thousand rubles.

The benefits of leeches during a hirudotherapy session: how it is carried out and how to prepare correctly

Preparation for a hirudotherapy session begins with the fact that the day before the leech is applied, the patient is advised to give up tobacco, alcohol, spicy food and perfume.

Before the procedure, the site of the intended bloodletting should simply be thoroughly wiped with cotton wool soaked in hot water. If there is such a need, you can shave the area being prepared.

Carrying out a hirudotherapy session involves placing leeches on the skin at the projection site of the organ whose treatment is necessary.

For example, for liver diseases, the benefits of leeches will be greater if they are placed on right hypochondrium, and in case of osteochondrosis, the greatest positive effect will be when placing annelids mainly on those areas near the spine or tailbone where the most are concentrated painful sensations.

Traditionally, from two to fifteen leeches that have long been deprived of food can be used in one session.

They are carefully taken near the head end with tweezers or by hand and lowered to the supposed site of suction.

To help this blood-sucking creature determine the location of the bite, there is such a method: you just need to carefully, with force, rub the selected point, this simple action causes increased blood circulation in a small area of the skin, which becomes the most attractive for leeches.

At the end of the hirudotherapy session, having received all the benefits from leeches, the little healer must be disconnected. You cannot forcibly tear off a leech, otherwise, due to the many enzymes contained in its saliva, the wound will bleed and hurt a lot, which will cause harm and probably worsen the disease. To do this, you just need to touch the leech with a cotton swab containing alcohol, and it will fall off on its own. The wound is not lubricated with any preparations.

The effect of a medicinal leech on the body includes several reasons:

Reflexogenic component- leeches stick to biologically active points.
Mechanical component- physical extraction of blood, which takes quite a long time.
Biological component- the leech injects its saliva, which contains many enzymes and biologically active substances.

As a result of all this, the benefits of leeches have been scientifically proven and are practically limitless for both women and men. men's health. Thanks to hirudin, contained in the saliva of leeches and thinning the blood, the resorption of blood clots and adhesions is noted, which has found a great response in the treatment of varicose veins, postoperative conditions and gynecological diseases in women. Antimicrobial and analgesic effects are noted.

Protease inhibitors, which relieve tissue inflammation, are considered as a significant aid in the treatment of prostatitis, arthritis, emphysema and others.

But, although the benefits of leeches are great, it is necessary to remember the contraindications. These include hemophilia, pregnancy, malignant tumors, congenital incoagulability, anemia, hemorrhagic diathesis, low blood pressure, allergy to leeches.

What diseases are treated with leeches and reviews of treatment with leeches

It is not without reason that they say that as many people as there are so many opinions. Reviews of treatment with leeches were no exception. But, after analyzing more than one hundred statements, we can derive the average idea of hirudotherapy among our population:

For most people, leeches still cause a feeling of disgust, so they often turn to this method of treatment only after all other methods have been tried and often have not produced significant results.
The price for a full course of hirudotherapy carried out in the clinic bites no worse than that very leech.
From time to time there are reviews that the disease, which they tried to get rid of during hirudotherapy sessions, did not go away, but performance, immunity and general health it got much better. Most likely this is due to blood renewal in the body.
Along with positive reviews about self-medication, such stories often emerge, at the end of which people who decided that they could do everything themselves had to seek qualified medical care. These include escaped leeches crawling into various orifices of the body, and profuse bleeding, which does not last more than a day, for example, when leeches are placed incorrectly on a vein, and the bite site becomes blistered due to allergic reactions, and so on. People who have experienced all these horrors strongly advise using hirudotherapy exclusively under the supervision of a doctor!
The overwhelming number of reviews about leech treatment are written in a positive manner. People who felt effective assistance And healing power hirudotherapy, become its ardent adherents, write numerous laudatory reviews, and recommend it to family and friends.

If hirudotherapy is so widely used and discussed, then let’s figure out what diseases are treated with leeches:

Cardiovascular and vascular diseases : hypertension, “jumping” pressure, vegetative-vascular dystonia, cerebral atherosclerosis, angina pectoris, post-infarction cardiosclerosis, ischemic disease heart, myocarditis, varicose veins veins, hemorrhoids, hypertensive crisis, thrombophlebitis, circulatory failure, trophic ulcers of any origin, thrombosis of arteries and veins, blood congestion, bruises, hematomas, swelling.
Gynecological diseases: female infertility, mastitis, mastopathy, fibromastopathy, chronic inflammation uterus and appendages, salpingo-oophoritis, endometriosis, adenomyosis of the uterine body, disorders menstrual cycle, menopausal conditions, ovarian dysfunction, ovarian cysts, colpitis, adhesive process in the pelvis, cervical erosion, ovarian cysts, fibroids, postpartum purulent-septic complications, uterine fibroids, bartholinitis, chlamydia.
Androgenic diseases: male infertility, prostatitis, prostate adenoma, seminal canal cyst, testicular hypotrophy, cavernitis, elephantiasis of the scrotum and penis.
Urological diseases: ordinary, acute purulent and cystic changes in the kidneys, urolithiasis, pyelonephritis, paranephritis, urinary and ligature fistulas, hepatorenal syndrome, hydronephrosis, chronic renal failure, urethritis, paraurethritis, ureteral stones, cystitis, paracystitis.
Endocrine diseases: diseases thyroid gland, diabetes mellitus, gout, obesity, diathesis.
Dental diseases: alveolitis, periostitis, chronic periodontitis, stomalgia syndrome, ganglioneuritis of the pterygopalatine ganglion, fibrous form HRAS, keratinization of the oral mucosa, periodontitis, gingivitis.
Application in cosmetology: cellulite, wrinkles, poor complexion, dull skin, bags under the eyes.
Ophthalmic diseases: iridocyclitis, macular degeneration, inflammation optic nerve in the stage of edema, glaucoma, pseudotumor, pathological processes of the vascular tract of the eye, keratitis, epithelial-endothelial dystrophy of the cornea, iridocyclitis, hidden retinal pigment abnormality, edematous exophthalmos, corneal erosion.
Dermatovenereology and skin diseases : red lichen planus, dermatosis, dermatitis, genital herpes, papillomatosis, eczema, acne, neurodermatitis, psoriasis, furunculosis, carbunculosis, scleroderma, baldness, pyoderma, lupus erythematosus, elephantiasis, toxicoderma.
Surgical diseases: felons, umbilical, inguinal and postoperative ventral hernias, post-injection infiltrates.
ENT diseases: sensorineural hearing loss, diseases of the paranasal sinuses, sinusitis, pansinusitis, sinusitis, chronic sensorineural hearing loss, adhesive otitis media of the middle ear, acute non-perforative otitis media, tinnitus.
Diseases nervous system : insomnia, headaches, neuroses, dizziness, epilepsy, migraine, neuralgia, neuritis of the auditory nerves, paresis, neuralgia of the glossopharyngeal nerve, neuralgia trigeminal nerve, neuritis sciatic nerve and neuralgia of the sciatic nerve, paralysis of various nerves, cerebral arteriosclerosis, hemorrhagic stroke, concussion, consequences of brain injury.
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system: radiculitis, myositis, rheumatism, rheumatoid arthritis, arthrosis, osteochondrosis, damage to bones and joints after injuries, intervertebral hernia, fractures, scleroderma.
Digestive diseases: constipation, cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, gastritis, pancreatitis, colitis, duodenitis, cirrhosis, biliary dyskinesia, diverticulosis.
Colds: runny nose, acute respiratory infections, ARVI, flu.

Where and how to place leeches correctly?

The question of how to place leeches is not difficult to answer. They are applied to biologically active points on the patient’s body in the area of painful sensations.

But only a qualified hirudotherapist knows how to place leeches correctly.

Regardless of whether the procedure is performed in a clinical setting or at home, he will be able to build the correct scheme administering leeches to treat the illness that has affected you.

After all, it is not always obvious where to place the leeches. For varicose veins and atherosclerosis on the legs, leeches are placed on both sides near the vein, but not on it itself.

For back pain ( intervertebral hernia, radiculitis or osteochondrosis) small bloodsuckers are located to the left and right of the spine along its entire length.

It is much more difficult to understand where to place the leech in case of headache or cerebral atherosclerosis. In this case, you need to feel on the head a couple of centimeters behind ears a tubercle on each side. These are the mastoid processes of the skull bones, and one leech should be placed on them.

At high and intracranial pressure It is recommended to place two or three leeches on the sacrum. This procedure will also help women feel better in critical days, will relieve inflammation of the uterus and bladder.

At low pressure, one leech placed on the back of the head will suffice.

Leeches placed on the stomach in the area of the liver, pancreas, stomach and intestines will help eliminate blood stagnation in abdominal cavity and will help get rid of obesity, normalize appetite and relieve colic.

Correct, with great care, placement of leeches on the face, on lateral surface nose and above the eyebrows, will help cope with sinusitis, rhinitis and obstruction maxillary sinuses. Placing leeches in the corners lower jaw, you can significantly improve the blood supply to the spine.

Pulmonary and nosebleeds will soon disappear if two or three leeches are placed around the anus.

Being healthy is easy. The main thing is not to be afraid of anything, find a qualified hirudotherapist and carry out the necessary course of treatment under his supervision.

Names: medical leech, common leech.

Area: Central and Southern Europe, Asia Minor.

Description: medical leech - ringworm class of leeches. Breathing is cutaneous, there are no gills. The muscles are well developed (accounting for about 65% of the body volume). The outer covering is called the skin, which consists of a single layer of signet-like cells that form the epidermis. On the outside, the epidermal layer is covered with cuticle. The cuticle is transparent, fulfills protective function and grows continuously, periodically being renewed during the molting process. Shedding occurs every 2-3 days. The shed skin resembles white flakes or small white covers. The body of the leech is elongated, but not whip-shaped, and consists of 102 rings. On the dorsal side the rings are covered with many small papillae. On the ventral side there are much fewer papillae and they are less noticeable. The head end is narrowed compared to the rear end. There are special suction cups on both ends of the body. The anterior sucker surrounding the mouth opening is the sucking circle. It is triangular in shape with three strong jaws, each of which has up to 60-90 chitinous teeth arranged in the form of a semicircular saw. Near the rear sucker there is an anus (powder). On the leech’s head there are ten small eyes arranged in a semicircle: six in front and four on the back of the head. With their help, a medicinal leech cuts through the skin to a depth of one and a half millimeters. The ducts of the salivary glands open at the edges of the jaws. Saliva contains hirudin, which prevents blood clotting. There are no kidneys. Two genital openings are located on the ventral side of the body, closer to the head end.

Color: Medical leech comes in black, dark gray, dark green, green, and red-brown colors. There are stripes on the back - red, light brown, yellow or black. The sides are green with a yellow or olive tint. The abdomen is motley: yellow or dark green with black spots.

Size: length 3-13 cm, body width up to 1 cm.

Lifespan: up to 20 years.

Habitat: fresh water bodies (ponds, lakes, quiet rivers) and damp places near water (clay, damp moss). Leeches love clean, running water.

Enemies: fish, muskrat.

Food/food: the medical leech feeds on the blood of mammals (humans and animals) and amphibians (including frogs), however, in the absence of animals, it eats the mucus of aquatic plants, ciliates, mollusks, and insect larvae living in water. It gently bites the skin and sucks out a small amount blood (up to 10-15 ml). It can live for more than a year without food.

Behavior: if the reservoir dries up, the leech buries itself in the moist soil, where it waits out the drought. In winter it hibernates, hiding in the soil until spring. Does not withstand ground freezing. Characteristic pose hungry leech - having attached itself to a stone or plant with its rear sucker, it pulls its body forward and makes circular movements with its free end. Reacts quickly to many stimuli: splash, temperature and smell. When swimming, the leech greatly elongates and flattens, acquiring a ribbon-like shape and bending in a wave-like manner. The rear sucker in this case acts as a fin.

Reproduction: hermaphrodite. After fertilization, the leech crawls ashore, digs a small depression in the moist soil, in which it produces oral glands foamy mass. It lays 10-30 eggs in this depression, after which it returns to the water.

Breeding season/period: June-August.

Puberty: 2-3 years.

Incubation: 2 months.

Offspring: Newborn leeches are transparent and similar to adults. They spend some time inside their cocoons, feeding on nutrient fluid. Later they crawl into the water. Before reaching sexual maturity, young leeches feed on the blood of tadpoles, small fish, earthworms or snails. If after three years a leech has never drunk the blood of mammals, then it will never reach sexual maturity.

Benefit/harm for humans: first information about the use of leeches with medical purposes belong to Ancient Egypt. Medical leech is used for bloodletting with medicinal purposes. In modern medicine, leeches are used to treat thrombophlebitis, hypertension, pre-stroke conditions, etc. Leech saliva that enters the human body has healing properties unique properties- contains more than 60 biologically active substances.

Literature:
1. Great Soviet Encyclopedia
2. Vladislav Sosnovsky. Magazine "In the Animal World" 4/2000
3. Jan Zhabinsky. "From the Life of Animals"
4. D.G.Zharov. "Secrets of hirudotherapy"
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