For the treatment of chronic psoriasis, various methods are used, various means are used, whole complexes of taking medications of various spectrum of action are prescribed. In most cases, an integrated approach to reducing the recurrent symptoms of the disease and treating the diseases that provoked the onset of psoriasis give a positive result. Traditional medicine recipes have also proven to be a successful way to combat a common skin disease such as psoriasis. The methods of treatment in this case are considered to be traditional, since they are all well studied, they allow to achieve a stable stage of remission, are available and widespread everywhere.
In addition, in the treatment of chronic forms of psoriasis, alternative methods of treatment are actively used today, which include, in this case, treatment with medical leeches – hirudotherapy. The technique can be used as an independent treatment in cases of resistance of the patient’s body to conventional therapies, or in combination with traditional methods and therapeutic agents.
What is the principle of leech therapy based on?
To begin with, it must be said that the only drawback of hirudotherapy is not very pleasant sensations of patients during and, for some time, after the procedures. A burning sensation from leech bites, disgust for the appearance of a “natural preparation” – that’s all that can disturb and irritate the patient during the course of hirudotherapy. In addition, it is contraindicated in pregnant women, with individual intolerance to the biological components of the saliva of leeches, with hemophilia , for the treatment of such a skin disease as psoriasis .
Thanks to hirudotherapy sessions, the supply of oxygen to the epidermal tissues is improved, blood microcirculation is stimulated, a vasodilating effect is produced, an anti-inflammatory effect is exerted on tissues affected by a severe form of the disease, swelling is removed, the risk of oxidative stress of the skin at the cellular level is reduced, and the frequency of psoriasis relapses is reduced.
In the saliva of leeches, you can find up to a hundred components most useful for the human body, thanks to which the walls of blood vessels are strengthened (prevention of atherosclerosis), the risk of blood clots is significantly reduced, and blood microcirculation is restored. In addition, psoriasis, the methods of treatment of which by alternative methods we are considering today, is exposed, in a certain sense of the word, to a systemic effect. That is, after hirudotherapy sessions, patients experience an improvement in the functions of the nervous system, normalize sleep, improve mood, strengthen the body’s protective functions, increase appetite, and improve overall well-being.
How is a hirudotherapy session carried out
The patient is comfortably located on the bed, while the hirudotherapist prepares the number of leeches required for one session (3-6, no more). The leeches are placed in a small beaker, which is then turned over and pressed firmly against the patient’s skin on the area of the body affected by psoriatic plaques.
After the leeches have sucked, the specialist removes the beaker and places pieces of cotton wool to the lower edge of the attachment so that the liquid secreted by the leech’s body does not get on the patient’s skin. The hirudotherapy session lasts until the leeches themselves disappear , completely saturated with “bad” blood. On average, this takes 45-60 minutes.
After the end of the procedure, an antiseptic bandage is applied to the bite site for a period of 1-2 days. You need to change the dressing and treat the wounds with iodine daily. The course of hirudotherapy consists of an average of 7-10 sessions, up to 150 leeches are used, it is necessary to repeat the course twice a day .