Records indicate that the use of the medicinal leech Hirudo medicinalis dates back to ancient Egypt and Greece and became popular in the Middle Ages. Hirudotherapy was the primary method of medical bloodletting or "cleansing". At the time, bloodletting was prescribed to treat a variety of ailments, from headaches to fevers.
...For example, in Victorian times, Britain used more than 42 million leeches a year for medical bloodletting.
The turnover of this medical activity was worth £1 million a year at 1800th century prices. However, enthusiasm for the practice waned in the late XNUMXs as the benefits of bloodletting were increasingly questioned.
The use of leeches for medicinal purposes has a long history.
Today, hirudotherapy - treatment with leeches - is widely used in various fields of medicine, including gynecology, neurology, ophthalmology and traumatology. Medical leeches are used to treat varicose veins, thrombophlebitis, hemorrhoids, hypertension, chronic pain, arthritis, bursitis and other diseases.
The mechanism of action of leeches is based on the fact that they secrete special substances in their saliva, such as hirudin, which help thin the blood and prevent it from clotting.
It may also reduce inflammation and relieve pain.