Ostovar Mohadeseh, Hosseinzadeh Ahmad, Heydari Mojtaba, Moghadam Mahsa, Shams Mesbah
Research Center for Traditional Medicine and History of Medicine, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Department of Vascular Surgery, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Iran J Med Sci. 2025 Aug 1;50(8):581-585. doi: 10.30476/ijms.2025.105450.3922. eCollection 2025 Aug.
Different side effects have been reported for leech therapy, such as local itching, skin reactions, infection, bleeding disorders, and anemia. The present study described a rare and lethal adverse event following leech therapy. A 63-year-old man was referred to Nemazee Teaching Hospital (Shiraz, Iran) in December 2020 with a two-week history of progressive right lower extremity swelling, erythema, and ecchymosis. One week before symptom onset, he had undergone leech therapy on the lateral calf and upper thigh of the right lower extremity, administered by a traditional healer. Physical examination revealed gangrene of the right leg and absence of all pulses. Color Doppler sonography of the leg and computed tomography angiography (CTA) of the thoracic aorta to the lower extremities revealed complete thrombosis of all right lower extremity arteries, extending to the right iliac artery and abdominal aorta. With a diagnosis of arterial occlusive disease and septic thrombophlebitis, the patient received intravenous antibiotics and anticoagulant therapy. Due to the inadequacy of medical treatments, a right lower extremity amputation was performed. The patient expired 5 days postoperatively due to septic shock and multiorgan failure.
水蛭疗法已报告有不同的副作用，如局部瘙痒、皮肤反应、感染、出血性疾病和贫血。本研究描述了一例水蛭疗法后罕见的致命不良事件。一名63岁男性于2020年12月被转诊至内马齐教学医院（伊朗设拉子），有右下肢进行性肿胀、红斑和瘀斑两周的病史。症状出现前一周，他接受了一名传统治疗师在右下肢外侧小腿和大腿上部进行的水蛭疗法。体格检查发现右腿坏疽且所有脉搏消失。腿部彩色多普勒超声和从胸主动脉到下肢的计算机断层血管造影（CTA）显示右下肢所有动脉完全血栓形成，延伸至右髂动脉和腹主动脉。诊断为动脉闭塞性疾病和感染性血栓性静脉炎后，患者接受了静脉抗生素和抗凝治疗。由于治疗效果不佳，进行了右下肢截肢。患者术后5天因感染性休克和多器官功能衰竭死亡。
