Today we will tell you what the procedure is like hirudotherapy for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. Reviews about it, contraindications are presented in the article. We also determine why this method of treatment of the spine received such a name. We’ll also find out where it is better to undergo therapy and how medical leeches positively affect problem areas in the cervical spine.
Where does this name come from?
What does the word hirudotherapy mean? From the Latin language hirudo and translates as "leech". Treatment with this type of annelid worms with osteochondrosis of the cervical spine gives a good result, provided that all the rules are followed.
The action of leeches on a sore spine
During the treatment procedure, these representatives of annelids bite through the skin and begin to suck out blood. Along with this, the hirudin, which is located in the saliva of leeches, enters the human body. Thanks to this substance, blood does not clot, blood vessels expand, blood clots, if any, dissolve. As a result, the walls of blood vessels are strengthened, and biochemical processes are accelerated. All this has an excellent effect on the cervical spine.
Conducting a treatment event
A hirudotherapy session takes place in this way: leeches are determined on problem areas in the neck, which must first be rubbed a little before the appearance of slight redness. The procedure can last from 40 to 80 minutes. The leech itself chooses the problem zone, it knows where to sit: where the body temperature is higher, and rightly so. After time, the annular worm either falls off itself, or it is removed by a specialist. In general, a leech bite is completely painless. After the procedure, the bite site may bleed a little, but this is normal.
A hirudotherapy session is carried out 1 time in 2 or 3 days. The course of treatment can be from 4 to 10 sessions, depending on the severity of the disease, but usually everything is limited to 5 or 6 procedures.
What are the expected results?
Hirudotherapy for cervical osteochondrosis produces the following therapeutic effect:
- The pain decreases, and soon it completely disappears.
- Blood begins to circulate better through the vessels.
- Spinal inflammation of the nerves goes away.
- Metabolism in the intervertebral discs, vertebrae, as well as in adjacent muscles is normalized.
- Psycho-emotional stress passes.
- The body's defenses increase.
- Sleep normalizes.
- Improves blood circulation in the brain.
- Eliminate headaches and dizziness.
Limitations
Leeches, photos of which are given in the article, may not be useful to all patients. Hirudotherapy is contraindicated in such situations:
- During pregnancy.
- If there are malignant tumors.
- For allergies to leech saliva.
- In case of blood diseases: anemia and hemophilia.
- With hypotension.
- In case of nervous and mental disorders.
- With physical exhaustion of the body.
- With individual intolerance.
- For any acute inflammatory processes in the body.
As you can see, hirudotherapy is not always useful. The use of leeches is possible only after consulting a specialist.
Where can I get a treatment session?
Many private centers and offices where you can treat diseases of the spine with leeches are in Russia. Not all of them. Every day they become more and more, they appear like mushrooms after rain. A popular institution in Moscow where treatment sessions with leeches are successfully carried out is the FitaMedical hirudotherapy center. This place is located at 40/1 Dmitrovskoye Shosse, near the Petrovsko-Razumovskaya metro station. The specialists of this center remind clients that before starting a treatment course with leeches, it is necessary to make an appointment with a doctor for a consultation. There are 3 ways to do this:
- Call the clinic by phone.
- Personally contact the above address.
- Sign up on the clinic website.
The cost of hirudotherapy services at the FitaMedical center is as follows:
- Initial consultation with a specialist - 500 p.
- One session of hirudotherapy (up to 5 leeches) - 1500 p.
- From 6 leeches and more - 1500 plus for each leech 150 r.
Existing risks
People should know that medical leeches are completely sterile. They are grown in special laboratory conditions at clinics. In addition, they are used only 1 time during their life. After all, after the procedure, leeches are eliminated. Therefore, it is not necessary to be afraid of infection by any infection through these representatives of annelids. But if you carry out the procedure not in the clinic, but with a friend in the apartment who also grows leeches, then there can be no question of any security.
Positive ratings from people
Hirudotherapy for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine receives mostly positive reviews. Patients who were treated in a good clinic by an experienced specialist note that these black annelids really helped with the disease, namely:
- Dulling painful pain in the spine.
- Calmed the nervous system.
- Improved blood circulation.
Patients write on the forums that a leech does not bring pain when bitten. And the procedure itself, according to people, gives a lot of positive emotions, even more than other methods of therapy, such as acupuncture or massage.
Negative ratings of people
Unfortunately, such treatment as hirudotherapy is not always the case with osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. There are situations when people remain dissatisfied with this method of treatment of intervertebral disc disease. Negative ratings are associated with such moments:
1. Unpleasant sensations when the leech creeps. Some people write that these annelids are slippery, wet, cold, and it becomes nasty because they are on the neck.
2. Bleeding. Patients write that after the procedure the blood can run for several hours, you even have to put on a sterile dressing or apply and periodically change the patch.
3. Scars after the procedure. Some patients note that after half a year or even a year they did not pass the scars - traces of the treatment of osteochondrosis with leeches.
4. The high cost. Medical leeches, photos of which do not make a good impression on everyone, are an expensive pleasure, and many people cannot afford to pay for such treatment. On average, for each leech, you have to give 150 p. And if these annelids need a few plus a total of 10 sessions will be needed to get rid of cervical osteochondrosis, then calculate how much such therapy will cost.
It is not clear why some people write positive reviews and others write negative reviews. In fact, everything is quite simple. Unsatisfied results of treatment remain those people who turned to questionable specialists for help who do not even have a license to carry out such treatment. And those who liked it went straight to trusted organizations, paid even more, but the result was better.
There is only one conclusion: it is necessary to deal with such a problem as osteochondrosis of the cervical spine in those clinics that have a license for hirudotherapy. It is also advisable to ask the doctor how many such procedures he has already performed and what were their results. After all, your health is only in your hands. And if you take it seriously, then you can quickly and easily overcome any disease.
Conclusion
From this article, the reader learned a lot of interesting information regarding such a treatment procedure as hirudotherapy for cervical osteochondrosis. Reviews, results of therapy, limitations in conducting you are now known. We found out that there are both supporters and opponents of this method of restoring a diseased spine. But if a person does not save money and begins to turn to good clinics, then he will feel a positive result - a quick relief of pain, an improvement in overall health.