Leeches: what they are and how they are used as a therapy in medicine
Leeches, also known by the name of "leeches", are invertebrates similar to earthworms that have been used since ancient times as therapy in medicine. Today leeches are exploited in hospitals for heart disease, diabetes problems and other diseases.
The leeches, which also live in Italy, cut the skin of their victims, the mammals, and suck their blood, their main source of nourishment. How then do they manage to be useful to us and to heal us? Let's find out together!
What are leeches? Do they also exist in Italy?
Leeches have learned to appreciate blood as their main source of livelihood. To move, they swim or use the extremities of the body, equipped with suction cups. Once the prey is spotted, they attach strongly to it thanks to a combination of mucus and suction, and then pierce the skin with their Y-shaped mouth, equipped with three teeth capable of cutting the skin.
The leech, at this point, injects an anticoagulant substance through the saliva, which allows it to feed for up to 40 minutes while keeping the blood circulation intact: this is precisely what makes it a precious help in hospitals! When the leech bites its victim it does not cause pain because its saliva contains a real anesthetizer, which is also useful for medical therapies.
For those wondering if leeches also exist in Italy, the answer is yes: in Italy there are about 30 species, of which only three suck the blood of mammals and are very rare. The most widespread is the Haemopis, which feeds almost only on small snails. In general, leeches live in intertropical regions and in particular in swampy areas, but they escape from polluted ones.
The leeches that we generally find in hospitals, however, are those specially bred for therapeutic use.
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What kind of therapy is practiced with leeches in medicine?
Leeches were used as a medical therapy even as far back as Egypt. However, they reached the peak of their popularity and diffusion in the mid-nineteenth century, when they were used to practice bloodletting.
For a long time, then, the leeches were no longer exploited, to return today to live a new popularity and, although they lack rigorous scientific sources in this regard, the therapy that uses them has always given good results.
The saliva of leeches contains substances with anti-inflammatory, anesthetizing and anticoagulant qualities such as hirudin and eglin. In fact, it is used in various microsurgery operations to avoid the formation of blood clots and tissue death. This treatment is called hirudotherapy.
The blood-thinning ability of leeches saliva is also useful for patients suffering from diabetes or heart disease and the main species used in these therapies is the "Hirudo Medicinalis, the officinal leech."
We can therefore say that, in general, leeches are useful as a pain reliever, anti-inflammatory therapy or to improve blood circulation through the anticoagulant effect and vascular enlargement. Usually, leeches are used when the patient cannot bear the medicines, or the same have not worked or, again, you want to avoid operating.
For which diseases can leech therapy be useful?
As we have seen, leeches can be used with excellent results to treat cardiovascular diseases (varicose veins in the first place), diseases such as arthrosis and arthritis (due to their pain-relieving effect), muscle or tendon inflammation, rheumatic diseases, contractures, elbow tennis player.
Leeches can also be useful for skin disorders, from bruises to simple boils. They have also been used as a therapy in case of tinnitus, metabolic and neurological diseases, hypertension, plantar fasciitis.
The therapy consists simply of placing the leeches on the affected part of the body. The leech will bite the skin without causing any particular pain, just a slight sting. At that point it will begin sucking blood, about 10-20 millimeters of blood, while releasing their beneficial saliva.
After an hour, the leeches will stop sucking blood on their own. For hygiene reasons, they are usually killed immediately after treatment.
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Leech therapy: contraindications and side effects
Leech therapy has numerous advantages: these animals do not transmit diseases, leave no scars and are tolerated by our body. However, there are some possible side effects. Depending on one's sensitivity, inflammation, swelling and a sensation of heat can occur after therapy. However, these are beneficial effects due to the improvement of circulation: therefore there is no need to worry!
It would be better to avoid, however, to proceed to a therapy with leeches if you suffer from blood clotting disorders due to medications and haemophilia; in case of taking immunosuppressants, gastric ulcer or inflammation of the mucous membranes; if you suffer from anemia, immunodeficiency, scarring disorders, or if you are pregnant or menstruating. And maybe that was just one of the things you didn't know about your period ...
