General characteristics of leeches

Leeches used in hirudotherapy known in antiquity, but the classification was made much later. Hirudo medicinalis (Linnaeus, 1758), Hirudo verba (Carena, 1820), Hirudo troctina (Johnson, 1816), Hirudo orientalis (Utevsky & Trontelj 2005).
Type Hirudo leech belongs to the family right Hirudinea. They have a secondary body cavity with a characteristic sinus canal-building. Secondary segmentation of the body has disappeared. At both ends of the body are suckers. The body is oblong, cylindrical, without appendages and bristles. In leeches have a fixed number of body segments. The segments do not coincide with the number of outer rings. All leeches have a seat. Some leeches feed on the body fluids of their hosts, but the large part of the free-living predators and scavengers. The vast majority live in the aquatic environment. These are mostly freshwater species, but are also known species of marine and terrestrial Piscicolidae. In Poland, 29 species were found. Found on all continents except Antarctica. They have a well-muscled jaws provided with chitinous teeth.

How do they work and treat?
Secretions from the salivary glands of leeches and other medical leeches blood feeded a result of adaptation to the specific mode of nutrition created a special substance in their salivary glands, allowing easier ingestion.
Until the nineteenth century, these substances were not known, but only observed prolonged bleeding from wounds after applying leeches and therapeutic effects of these therapies. Nobody could have guessed that this is related to the occurrence of these substances in the glands. Therapeutic effects attributed to the mechanism of bloodletting, not a complex biochemical activity of the substance. Chitinous teeth placed on three jaw skin incision starts in the three-armed host shaped Mercedes-known brand. When going into the jaws of the endings in the skin of the salivary glands located in the jaws of these substances are secreted into the body of the host. Anticoagulants are then secreted blocking the blood clotting system and an antibiotic produced by bacteria and other substances that prevent the degradation of blood in the gut leeches.

There are several stages of the substance of the salivary glands:

• Local anesthesia of the skin incision to avoid skin irritation may lead to a host, which could shed leech from the skin or crush.
• The secreted enzyme hyaluronidase has increased during the penetration into the tissues of the salivary glands of other substances
• vasodilator substances mainly capillary. (eg, histamine). Vasodilation causes increased blood flow in the vicinity of leeches.
• After blocking coagulation anticoagulants to prevent clots, which could reduce both the amount charged and the hinder its transport from the mouth of the pouch intestinal
• The lytic substances. Variably present in qualitatively and quantitatively different species of medical leeches. Their role is to destroy and the dissolution of existing and emerging clots
• Modulators fibrynogenezy system (eg, Calin) in order to extend the blockade of the coagulation system in the event that the process of food intake would extend to a variety of reasons, a pre-flush, anticoagulants (eg, hirudin) would no longer work now.
• Trade changing the voltage of connective tissue fibers (eg, elastase, collagenase). These substances are to reduce tension and lead to better tissue blood supply and thus the inflow of blood in place of their actions.