Hirudotherapy is the oldest direction in medicine. Leeches have been used to treat thousands of years ago. This method was known in Ancient India, Greece, Egypt. They mentioned hirudotherapy in their writings and treatises of Avicenna, Hippocrates.
History of hirudotherapy
In Europe, the peak of popularity of hirudotherapy fell on the XVII-XVIII centuries. In those days, doctors believed that almost all diseases are caused by "bad blood." To get rid of it, the patients were bled. In the Middle Ages, the method of notches was used for this, which were made with a special tool - a scarifier.
But in hard-to-reach and very delicate places, its application was difficult. And in these cases, medical leeches came to the rescue. Treatment at home allowed the doctor to put up to 40 leeches on the patient's body in one session.
In the middle of the 19th century, European medicine underwent major changes, many concepts were radically transformed, and hirudotherapy faded into the background. But at the beginningIn the 20th century, scientists became interested in this method again. They found beneficial substances in the saliva of leeches. During this period, hirudotherapy experienced a rebirth.
I must say that the "leech trade" in our country was quite well developed and brought a high income. Russia in the 19th century supplied more than 60 million leeches every year to European countries. But after official medicine abandoned hirudotherapy, the business of breeding, trapping and selling leeches practically came to naught.
Use
Medicinal leech refers to annelids. It lives on the territory of almost all European countries, but in recent years its number has significantly decreased due to mass catch. The medicinal leech is a parasite that feeds on blood. She lives in fresh water bodies, attaching herself to various surfaces and lying in wait for her prey. Having stuck to it, the leech drinks up to 15 ml of blood in one session, increasing in mass up to 9 times.
How are leeches used?
There are three common ways to use leeches for healing today:
Alive. Live worms are placed on the patient's skin. They suck and drink blood, secreting saliva into the wound. It contains substances with healing properties
Extracts. They are made from leeches or their salivary glands
Drugs. For their production, parasite genes are isolated, which are responsible for the formation of various proteins. Then they are introduced into the DNA of microorganisms, after which they synthesizesubstance necessary for treatment
A leech has three small teeth in its mouth. With their help, she bites through the skin and sucks (depending on the duration of the procedure) from 5 to 15 ml of blood.
Hirudotherapy, being partly a method of alternative medicine, is closely related to acupuncture. Most hirudotherapists also have acupuncture skills: they select points on the skin to place leeches in accordance with the rules of acupuncture.
Leech provides a small amount of blood sucking. This unloads the local blood flow and slightly reduces blood pressure.
In addition, a biological effect is provided. The saliva of the worm contains bioactive substances that thin the blood and stimulate some biological reactions in the body. The saliva of leeches contains more than 60 substances. Some of them have a powerful therapeutic effect:
- Hirudin. This is a protein that is an anticoagulant. It inhibits blood clotting. Interestingly, this substance is part of the venom of some snakes.
- Collagenases and apyrase. Enzymes that prevent platelets from sticking together. They improve blood flow.
- Protease inhibitors. Substances that block proteinase enzymes that destroy protein molecules. They have an analgesic effect. That is why during the procedure a person does not feel the pain of a leech bite.
Treatment with leeches at home
There are situations when a person cannot visit the hirudocenter. ATIn this case, you can invite a specialist to your home or carry out the procedure yourself, having previously received detailed instructions from a hirudotherapeutist.
The fact is that it is very important to know before starting treatment with leeches at home the points where these "healers" are placed, to determine their exact number, the duration of the session.
How is the procedure performed?
It should be divided into several stages:
Skin preparation. Thoroughly wash the area where the leeches will be placed with baby soap and rub it well with dry gauze until the skin turns a little red. Do not use cosmetics with strong fragrances - this will repel parasites
Staging. Take a leech using a clean vial or test tube and bring it to the desired point. Here the first question arises for those who first treat with leeches at home - where to put it? It depends on what disease you are treating. We will talk about this below. If the leech does not want to bite, take another one. You can lubricate the skin with sugar water or make a small puncture with a sterile needle so that a drop of blood comes out
Blood extraction. At the time of the bite, the patient may feel a slight burning sensation, which disappears after 20 seconds. This begins to act analgesics contained in the salivary glands. With both suction cups, the leech is sucked in and keeps on the skin on its own, so the test tube can be removed
Completion of the procedure. After almost an hour, the leech is saturated and will fall off. Sometimes for medicalindications for treatment with leeches at home, the patient needs a session of no more than 25 minutes, in this case the bloodsucker is removed as follows: bring a cotton pad moistened with any aggressive-smelling liquid - vinegar, ammonia, alcohol, iodine to the front suction cup. Pulling, cutting, tearing off a leech is strictly prohibited - violent actions will only make it go deeper into the skin
What to do after the procedure?
A sterile dressing should be applied to the bite site: within a few hours (sometimes a day), blood will ooze from the wound, which has the shape of a three-beam asterisk. This is completely normal. Just change your bandages regularly. Do not disinfect and lubricate the bite site with anything. The tiny scar will disappear completely in two weeks.
Utilization of leeches
Satiated leeches are destroyed by placing them in a container with chloramine. Even if they are not completely satiated, putting them on another patient after a few months is fraught with infection with pathogens that were in the blood of the first patient.
On average, one session of treatment with leeches at home requires from two to five bloodsuckers, much less often ten. Do not put more than four pieces on the head in one session. If you are prescribed subcutaneous injections, then it is better to do them before starting the procedure: during the session, the drugs will more actively enter the bloodstream and spread throughout the body.
Hirudotherapy in cosmetology
This is a special direction, involving the use of various means of leeches. The most popular of them are the following:
- Creams based on a complex of (bioactive) medical leeches HM1. These compounds are used to combat irritation, dryness, peeling of the skin. In addition, their use is justified for sensitive, aging skin.
- Creams produced on the basis of an aqueous extract of leeches, which is subjected to biochemical processing - HM2. They are used to combat psychosomatic illnesses.
- HM3 creams are used based on the saliva of leeches, which can fight inflammation, stress, and aging skin.
- The main component of the Girudo gel is the HM1 complex. It has proven itself to eliminate swelling and bruising after operations.
- Bath tablets may have a different composition. They are used to increase tone or, on the contrary, for relaxation.
Now let's see if home treatment with leeches helps with serious he alth problems.
Osteochondrosis
This is a disease that causes physical suffering. In this case, leeches are installed in the area of the vertebrae, more than others affected by pathology.
As a rule, treatment is carried out in a complex way: in parallel with hirudotherapy, manual therapy, physiotherapy, and massage are recommended.
Treatment of varicose veins with leeches at home: reviews and opinions
It should be said right away that experts are ambiguous about the treatment of varicose veins with leeches. Some say it's safe andan effective way of therapy, and others consider it unacceptable.
Proponents of this method believe that it has a number of beneficial effects:
- improves blood flow at the site of leeching;
- reduces puffiness;
- thinning the blood;
- prevents blood clots;
- pain disappears;
- the walls of blood vessels are strengthened.
Opponents of this method do not deny its beneficial effect on the affected vessels, but they are categorically against the treatment of varicose veins with leeches at home, especially if the procedure is carried out by an inexperienced person.
First of all, it must be remembered that the use of leeches requires knowledge and special skills, so it is undesirable to use this method for self-treatment. Before starting therapy, you should undergo an examination. It will help to identify pathologies that may become a contraindication to this procedure. Multiple tests required:
- on the prothrombin index;
- blood test (general);
- for fibrinogens.
Patients need to know that the effect of the treatment will not appear immediately, they must be prepared for long-term treatment. At least eight procedures must be completed. With the return of symptoms after six months, the treatment is repeated. The points on which the leeches are placed are important. They must be determined by the doctor during the examination.
Before the start of the main treatment, the liver and pelvic organs are cleaned. For this, induring the first visit to the doctor, several leeches are placed on points located in the liver area. At the next visit, three pieces are placed in the abdomen. During the third visit to the doctor, three leeches are planted in the sacrum. After that, one is placed on the back, in the area of the kidneys.
In the following sessions, leeches are placed on problematic varicose areas. The doctor fixes two leeches in the diseased area. After that, he determines the length of the vein and places several more individuals along it on both sides. The duration of treatment is determined by a specialist. The first treatment lasts an average of twenty-five minutes.
According to the reviews of patients who underwent a full course of treatment with leeches, they were able to completely get rid of the disease. The disadvantages of treatment, most of them include the unpleasant appearance of natural healers.
Liver disease
We have already mentioned that instruction on "communication" with leeches must be received in the office of an experienced hirudotherapist. You will see how to place leeches correctly, learn techniques and some secrets that are known to doctors. This will allow you to treat the liver with leeches at home. But even in this case, the doctor must definitely monitor the patient's condition.
In case of liver diseases, leeches are placed on the stomach in the problem area. With stagnant processes, they are placed in the zone of the right hypochondrium. A contraindication to this procedure is hemophilia - blood incoagulability. The course of treatment with leeches at home for liver diseases is notless than 12 procedures. In each individual case, the duration of treatment is determined by the doctor.
Hemorrhoids
Treatment of hemorrhoids with leeches at home can be carried out by a person with experience in such procedures, after additional consultation with a hirudotherapist. Treatment will be effective only in the initial stages of the disease. In neglected situations, a positive effect should not be expected.
Timely treatment will help relieve inflammation of the nodes, in some cases they disappear completely. Most often, hirudotherapy in the treatment of hemorrhoids is prescribed as an adjunct to drug treatment. Leeches in this case prevent thrombosis. It is important to know that leech treatment is used only for external hemorrhoids.
During the procedure, the patient should lie on his stomach. Leeches are placed in the anus, in the coccyx area, often on inflamed and enlarged nodes. Usually no more than four pieces are used.
Reviews
Most patients find home treatment with leeches to be effective. Reviews suggest that it helps with many diseases. However, it must be remembered that the procedures should be carried out by an experienced person, it is better if it is a hirudotherapist. When self-treating with leeches at home, the points on which individuals are placed must be well remembered.
This treatment helped patients with varicose veins, hypertension, osteochondrosis, diseases of the liver and gallbladder, as well as other ailments. They advise before treatmentconsult a doctor and undergo the necessary examinations.
