Hirudotherapy is the application of medical leeches for therapeutic purposes. Although there are over 600 species of leeches in nature, only 15 of them are classified as medical leeches. Various biological properties of these medicinal leeches are used in hirudotherapy.
Leech therapy typically involves a painless initial bite and an attachment period lasting 20 to 45 minutes during which the leech consumes 5 to 15 ml of blood. Determining the number of leeches to use for a particular therapy session is often difficult, considering factors such as the patient's age, gender, physical condition, overall strength, and irritability of the leech. Therefore, accurately determining the correct number of leeches for a particular therapy session depends on the intuition and experience of the specialist, taking into account all relevant factors.
Medical leech therapy, which is considered a traditional and complementary treatment, has become increasingly important as a supportive treatment approach in many diseases, especially in recent years.
Varicose veins and venous problems
deep vein thrombosis
Peripheral artery occlusions
Hemorrhoids
Some Eye Diseases (Behçet's Disease, Uveitis, Glaucoma, Retinal Artery Occlusions, Maculopathies, Yellow Spot Disease)
Skeletal system diseases such as Arthritis and Osteoarthritis
Migraine and tension type headaches
Various muscle pains, fibromyalgia, restless legs syndrome
Inflammation and pain of herniated disc, sciatica, tendinitis, tenosynovitis, bursitis
Nervous system diseases and paralysis (MS, ALS, PARKINSON, etc.)
Eczema, urticaria, chronic skin diseases, psoriasis and acne
It is very important that medical leech therapy is applied under hospital conditions and in sterile and expert hands.
