The term "hirudotherapy" refers to one of the areas of medicine. In the process of this type of treatment, specially grown leeches are used. Hirudotherapy reviews are mostly positive. The procedure itself is frightening many, but the effect of its implementation is very impressive: the condition improves with existing diseases, and vitality increases.
Treatment principle
Hirudotherapy was an effective way to get rid of many ailments thousands of years ago. It was successfully used in practice by the Egyptian pharaohs and famous ancient healers: Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna. The heyday of the method fell on the period from XIII to XIX century. But soon it became less and less applied in practice, which was due to the use of an excessive number of leeches.
Currently, judging by the reviews, treatment with hirudotherapy has again become very popular. Doctors apply this method in practice around the world. If earlier leeches were caught in natural conditions or a person himself plunged into the reservoirs where they lived, now they are grown on biological farms.
These annelids are parasites that feed on blood. Leeches at both ends have suction cups, the anterior is considered the oral cavity. A hungry worm can drink up to 15 ml of mammalian blood at a time, after which it will not need food for several months. Coagulation of liquid connective tissue in the stomach of a leech does not occur, due to the presence of anticoagulants in it.
In hirudotherapy, only those worms are used whose hunger has reached a maximum degree, that is, about 5 months have passed since their last satiation. Leeches are placed strictly on certain points of the body. Skin contact in a given area has a positive effect on various systems. In addition, in the process of draining blood, leech saliva enters the body, which also has a beneficial effect on it. Judging by the reviews, the benefits of hirudotherapy are enormous: already after the first procedure, one feels better, sleep is normalized, the emotional background is stabilized, and a high degree of performance remains longer.
Positive impact
Treatment with leeches has many advantages.
During hirudotherapy, worms have the following effects on the human body:
- Reflex. Leeches are placed only in certain areas. By piercing the skin in the necessary parts of the body, the worms stimulate biologically active points, due to which the work of organs and systems associated with them is normalized.
- Mechanical In the process of saturation of leeches, the local blood flow is unloaded.
- Biological The saliva of worms, penetrating the human blood, contains about 100 nutrients.
Due to the complex effect, the following positive changes occur in the body:
- the work of the digestive system is normalized;
- blood coagulation decreases;
- growth and spread of tumors stops;
- the body's defenses are strengthened;
- metabolic processes are accelerated;
- saturation of cells and tissues with oxygen improves;
- stagnation disappears;
- natural aging processes slow down;
- blood clots cease to form;
- microcirculation is normalized;
- fat deposits break down;
- conduction of nerve impulses improves;
- pathogens are inhibited.
- Hirudotherapy receives positive feedback after the first session.
- Patients report the following improvements:
- the pain recedes;
- there is a positive trend in existing diseases;
- cosmetic defects of the skin disappear: scars, scars from rashes, it looks much younger;
- emotional state is normalized.
Leeches are currently being sold for home use. But it is important to remember that, like any other treatment method, hirudotherapy and contraindications are available. Testimonials from people confirm that the procedure, the implementation of which seems simple, is in fact extremely complex. Only a specially trained doctor can strictly follow the procedure. Treatment with leeches should be carried out exclusively in medical institutions.
Indications
Reviews of hirudotherapy prove that it helps to cope with many diseases.
Doctors may recommend resorting to this method of treatment if the patient has the following pathologies:
- Arthrosis, osteochondrosis. The main causes of damage to the joints and cartilage are: circulatory and metabolic disorders, injuries, high intensity of physical activity. The substances contained in the saliva of leeches significantly improve the well-being of a person and stop the development of the disease. For example, hirudotherapy helps with osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. Reviews after the first sessions are impressive: patients note that their physical activity has improved, and pain has disappeared.
- Gynecological diseases. For the treatment and prevention of pathologies of this nature, leeches are placed both inside and outside. This is due to the fact that most of the ailments develop against the background of stagnation of blood in the organs of the reproductive system, and leeches in a short time eliminate it. Judging by medical reviews, hirudotherapy for infertility is an auxiliary measure that at times increases the effectiveness of the main treatment. In addition, leeches help to reduce the size of benign neoplasms and prevent their degeneration into malignant.
- Prostatitis. Hirudotherapy relieves pain, and its use simultaneously with medication significantly increases the effectiveness of treatment.
- Varicose veins. The main reasons for its development are weak vascular walls and blood stasis. Judging by the reviews, hirudotherapy for varicose veins is very effective. Together with leech saliva, hirudin enters the body - a substance that strengthens the walls of blood vessels and prevents their destruction. In addition, during the treatment process, blood liquefies, due to which blood clots cease to form. Hirudotherapy completely eliminates varicose veins in the initial stage and stops its development in the late.
In addition, indications for treatment with leeches are:
- migraine;
- diseases of a dermatological nature;
- cosmetic defects;
- gout;
- glaucoma;
- diabetes;
- obesity;
- lung pathology;
- hemorrhoids;
- kidney disease
- neuritis;
- paresis;
- digestive disorders;
- inflammatory processes in the intestines;
- otorhinolaryngological diseases;
- pathology of the gallbladder.
It is important to understand that only a specialist can assess the feasibility of hirudotherapy. Doctors' reviews confirm that self-medication can lead to serious consequences.
Contraindications
Before the appointment of the procedure, the patient is examined by a specialist, he also prescribes studies that confirm or exclude the presence of factors in which hirudotherapy is prohibited.
Treatment with leeches is not carried out if a person suffers from:
- oncological diseases;
- poor blood clotting;
- exhaustion;
- severe intoxication;
- low blood pressure;
- autoimmune pathologies;
- various diseases in the acute stage;
- tendency to bleeding;
- severe anemia.
In addition, the method is not used to treat various ailments in pregnant and lactating women, as well as in people who are intoxicated or those who consumed alcohol-containing drinks the day before.
According to medical reviews, hirudotherapy effectively eliminates many diseases, but only if all the health characteristics of the patient were taken into account when prescribing it.
Possible harm
With proper use of the method of complications, as a rule, is not observed. The main rule is to use only specially grown leeches. This is due to the fact that worms are carriers of diseases from a sick organism to a healthy one. Part of the infected blood always remains on their jaws and when a bite is made, pathogenic organisms can penetrate into a person and provoke the development of a disease. Currently, the probability of infection is reduced to zero, since only specially grown worms are used in medical institutions, and after they are saturated, they are destroyed.
Leech saliva contains anticoagulants, as a result of which wounds in the places of their bites can bleed throughout the day. If this period is delayed, it is recommended to consult a doctor.
Before the procedure, the patient needs to undergo a series of studies. Ignoring this need can lead to a deterioration in well-being against the background of blood loss and a violation of homeostasis. Judging by the reviews, hirudotherapy significantly improves the state of health, but only if all contraindications have been taken into account and diagnostics have been carried out.
Preparation
In order to assess the feasibility of the method, the doctor at the reception asks the patient questions about when and what he was sick with, what is currently bothering.
In addition, a person needs to donate blood for the following types of tests:
- General, especially important for a specialist, indicator of ESR;
- Wasserman reaction;
- blood coagulability;
- HIV
- viral hepatitis.
According to the results of these studies, it becomes clear whether the appointment of hirudotherapy is adequate. The need for diagnosis should be treated responsibly. All activities are carried out in order to ensure patient safety.
How is the procedure
Hirudotherapy is carried out according to the following algorithm:
- A person lays on the couch and frees the necessary part of the body from clothes.
- The doctor takes a few leeches and puts them on strictly defined points.
- Worms bite through the skin and begin to become saturated with blood. In this case, the patient feels mild pain that disappears in a few seconds. This is because the saliva of worms contains substances that have an analgesic effect.
- The duration of the procedure is, on average, 1.5 hours. After the leeches are full and fall off, the doctor puts pressure bandages on the wounds.
The number of worms used can vary. For example, based on medical reviews, with osteochondrosis in hirudotherapy, only 2-3 leeches can be involved if the disease is at an early stage, up to 10 if the pathology progresses and is accompanied by pronounced symptoms. For the prevention of various ailments, the use of up to 3 leeches is also sufficient.
When setting up worms, the scheme must be strictly observed. Suction points are selected based on the existing disease:
- Varicose veins. Leeches are placed along the vein, but not on the vessel itself (this can cause severe bleeding).
- Hypertension, migraine - an elevated region of the skull behind the auricles (mastoid processes).
- Pathology of the pelvic organs, hemorrhoids, prostatitis - tailbone, near the anus.
- Eye diseases - whiskey.
- Radiculitis - lower back, on both sides of the spine.
- Pathologies of the liver, gall bladder - leeches are placed around the affected organ.
- Kidney disease is an area just above the lower back.
- Arthritis - around the joints in which the inflammatory process proceeds.
- Osteochondrosis is an area just below the neck, on both sides of the spine.
The duration of treatment with leeches is determined by the doctor. For preventive purposes, as a rule, 2-3 procedures are sufficient. For the treatment of various pathologies, the doctor can prescribe up to 10 sessions, but it is not always necessary to complete the full course. For example, based on reviews, hirudotherapy for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can help after 5-6 procedures.
Where to go? Session cost
Leech treatments are currently very popular. Hirudotherapists receive patients in almost every private medical institution. Information on whether this service is provided must be clarified in the registry of the selected clinic.
Hirudotherapy is a treatment method that is carried out on a paid basis. Pricing policy is different for each institution. It depends on its level, the purchase value of leeches on biological farms. On average, the price of one session is 1500-1800 rubles. It includes the use of 3-5 leeches. In some clinics, the doctor’s initial consultation is additionally paid, during which he determines how many worms need to be set for 1 procedure. The cost of each additional leech is about 150 rubles.
Reviews
Hirudotherapy is a treatment method whose effectiveness has been tested by time. Most patients note a significant improvement in well-being after the first session: the pain recedes, a constant feeling of fatigue, working capacity and the degree of concentration of attention increase. Doctors advise taking the course twice a year to maintain good health and prevent various pathologies.
Finally
Hirudotherapy is a treatment method in the process of which medical leeches are used. The procedure is absolutely safe for the patient, as the worms are grown and purchased on special biological farms, and after they are saturated with blood, they are destroyed by placing in acid. This method effectively copes with many pathologies. For example, judging by the reviews, hirudotherapy for cervical osteochondrosis has helped thousands of people. In addition, this method is used even in the treatment of infertility.