HARNESSING THE HEALING POWER OF LEECHES IN ECZEMA CARE: A CASE REPORT

Saif Ali Siddiqui*, Sayyed Adnan Mohammad, Mohammad Shoaib and Asia Sultana

ABSTRACT

Background: Eczema is a prevalent skin disorder, affecting about 20% of children and up to 10% of adults. It is clinically presented as erythema, edema, papules, vesicles, scaling, and lichenification depending on the chronicity of the skin lesions. The etiopathogenesis relies on the combination of factors. Objective: The present article reports the healing properties and efficacy of Leech Therapy in eczema (Nar-farsi). This study provides an efficient and inexpensive alternative management of eczema. Intervention: A 60-year-old male has a complaint of a dry and itchy lesion over the flexor aspect of the right foot, which was diagnosed as a case of mild eczema. The patient was treated with local application of Irsal-e-Alaq (Leech Therapy) weekly for a period of six weeks. The efficacy of leech therapy was assessed every 15th day based on the selected criteria for assessment i.e. EASI Score. Result: In this case report, leech therapy was found effective and no side effects were noted during the course of treatment. There is no reported recurrence during the post-treatment follow-up. Conclusion: Leech Therapy has been proven beneficial in treating cases of eczema and enhancing patient‟s quality of life.

Keywords: Eczema, Leech therapy, Unani medicine, Hirudotherapy, Nar-farsi.