Which technique is right for you?
The methods of using leeches and their diversity are as old as leech therapy itself. Since ancient times, practitioners have sought the most effective methods in hirudotherapy. There was a belief in the healing power of bleeding and the supernatural therapeutic properties of leeches. Techniques of venesection and hirudotherapy were combined, and leeches were used in conjunction with acupuncture and other Ayurvedic methods that are still practiced in Far Eastern countries today.
Modern medicine tends to view medical techniques developed over 5,000 years ago skeptically, beginning with ancient Hindu Ayurvedic medicine. Even though no physiological connections have been scientifically proven that could correspond to energy channels, meridians, and acupuncture points, the effects of acupuncture or the occurrence of internal organ pain manifesting as Head’s zones (points on the body) have found medical confirmation.
According to many authors, combining hirudotherapeutic techniques with methods from ancient medicine produces beneficial therapeutic effects. These methods are popular among hirudotherapists in the East and usually do not require complicated medical knowledge. Causing harm is rare compared to the greater risk of using leeches in local therapies, which significantly exceed the therapeutic results of systemic methods but may be associated with a higher number of complications and require certain adaptation to Safety and Hygiene standards as well as basic knowledge of human anatomy and physiology.
The main motto at Rehealth.me is “do no harm,” therefore the techniques we use are generally accepted by the therapeutic community and reflect all standards of contemporary Hirudotherapy.
There are approximately 20 hirudotherapeutic methods, although most are unacceptable to me for various reasons. I will list a few that are most used in modern Hirudotherapy and in Rehealth.me:
-
Local Treatment of Disorders Using Hirudotherapy
The most popular and fundamentally sound treatment method. This is also the most frequently used method at Rehealth.me. Substances from the salivary glands act directly on the treated area. Enzymes penetrate deep into the tissues, creating a therapeutic effect.
-
Hirudocomplexotherapy
The effect of leech substances on multiple organ systems through periodic application of leeches to selected areas of the body. A very popular method for slowing down the aging process, improving organ function, and preventive treatment of e.g. atherosclerosis. The zones for leech application include: the navel (direct connection to the portal vein), liver, gallbladder appendix, spleen and pancreas region, heart, coccyx, kidneys, and lungs.
-
Hirudochemotherapy
Acting on specific internal organs through areas of the body located in their topographical projection on the body surface. This method aims to stimulate circulation in the organ by stimulating cutaneous circulation. It is similar to Hirudocomplexotherapy with the difference that we focus the treatment on a single selected organ that requires therapy.
-
Hirudoenergotherapy
A method based on the holistic system of ancient Ayurvedic medicine, and subsequently Chinese medicine. It involves influencing the human energy system through individual energy centers. Using this method, imbalances in the energy system of the human body can be corrected before they cause visible physical symptoms in the form of dysfunction of a given organ.
There are many proponents of this method, especially in Russia and Eastern Europe, where the main hirudotherapeutic treatments are based on the theory of human energy centers and energy flow channels. This method has recently gained considerable interest among Hollywood actresses.
Prof. Krashenyuk from St. Petersburg recorded changes in the exits and entrances of energy channels (meridians) and described them with a special Akabane-Krashenyuk test, demonstrating energy changes in these points after the application of leeches. This is an interesting method that requires much time and patience.
-
Hirudoreflexotherapy
The effect of leeches on acupuncture points in individual therapy or combined with local application of leeches. The therapeutic effects obtained confirm the validity of such an approach in many conditions. Although contemporary European medicine does not use acupuncture in inpatient treatment, it is not prohibited in private practice. This method is frequently used in combination with Local Treatment of Disorders Using Hirudotherapy. For example, the relief of pain in the neck, shoulder, and knee areas, supplemented with acupuncture points and the use of leeches as “living needles,” provides better results than using acupuncture alone or leeches alone as Local Treatment of Disorders.
-
Hirudoneurotherapy
A method utilizing the stimulating effect of salivary compounds on neurotransmitters in the nervous system. Research conducted in St. Petersburg (Krashenyuk, Dulniev) confirmed an increase in the activity of neurotransmitters in the nervous system after stimulation with leeches. The sequence of activation of neurotransmitters over time was recorded after salivary gland substances entered human brain tissue.
The neurotropic and neurostimulating effect of leech substances was determined. This research is extremely promising for the future treatment of cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, and other neural tissue disorders. At Rehealth.me, this method is used in the treatment of chronic headaches and migraines.
Below, I present information about other hirudotherapeutic techniques that we do not practice at Rehealth.me:
-
Hirudoimmunotherapy
Direct action on the human lymphatic system. This method is dangerous due to close contact with the lymphatic system. Not suitable for use in a private practice. Risks include infection or uncontrolled development of neoplastic processes. Very promising in professional medicine. Recently, many studies have confirmed the anti-cancer effects of medicinal leeches in inhibiting cancer metastasis in humans. This method may offer hope for patients with disseminated cancer. Currently in the clinical research phase. Not yet used in medicine.
-
Hirudoautohaemoimmunotherapy
Administration of blood consumed by the leech back to the patient to induce pyrogenic reactions. This method is unacceptable in European medicine.
-
Autoimmunohirudotherapy
Where the contents of the leech’s digestive tract, along with the Aeromonas bacteria, are collected with a syringe and then administered back intramuscularly or subcutaneously to induce inflammatory reactions and increase body temperature. Sometimes this method is supplemented with chicken egg protein. The risk of abscesses, phlegmon, zoonotic diseases, and generalized infection ending in the patient’s death is then very high, especially in states of weakened immune system.
-
Other Controversial Practices
There are proponents of drinking water containing leech excrement; others soak dressings in it and apply them to wounds; still others arrange therapeutic baths in solutions of blood from leeches or powdered leeches. These are various oddities that can be dangerous, and at Rehealth.me, we neither use nor promote their self-application.
