Posted on
May 17, 2010 by
Bizarre Medical News
Taken from the name of the creature itself – Hirudo medicinalis, or the European medicinal leech – Hirudotherapy is the name used for the medical use of leeches. This practice was very common in early medicine, but is still used today.
In older times, if a sickness caused the patient to flush, the doctors assumed that the patient had too much blood in the body. The leeches were used to drain out the excess blood, thus (theoretically) restoring balance to the humors of the human body. Aelus Galenus, a Roman philosopher and physician, believed in Hippocrates’ humors theory, which stated that the humors were blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. Imbalances in the humors caused different personality “disorders” – those with too much yellow bile were melancholy, those with too much blood were sanguine, with overly social behavior.
Following the establishment of Galen’s theories, Nicander, a Greek physician, started using leeches for medicinal treatment in 200 B.C. Prior to the use of leeches, physicians would use a procedure called “cupping” to achieve bloodletting. This procedure would start with an incision to the patient’s skin, and then a cup would be placed over the incision to cause a vacuum effect to suck out the blood. Nicander discovered that leeches were far more effective and less difficult to administer than cups, and the practice took off.
In the 12th century, someone named Abd-el-latif al-Baghdadi started using leeches to clean up after surgery. He would apply the leech to suck away the excess blood. That’s more in line with the way hirudotherapy is used today. It is used in microsurgery as a way to keep the blood from coagulating. They are also used in reconstructive surgery as a means to restore blood flow to reattached body parts. Too bad they’re so creepy-looking, because they really are a sort of medical marvel.
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Tags: black bileblood phlegmbody partsgreek physicianHealthHematologyhirudotherapyhuman bodyleechesmedical practicesMedical Specialtiesmedicinal leechreconstructive surgeryvacuum effectyellow bile
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Posted on
October 19, 2009 by
Bizarre Medical News
photo by |[ sykez ]|
The human body, when functioning properly, produces an enzyme called Flavin containing monooxygenase 3 (FM03). When the body does not produce this enzyme, or if it doesn’t produce enough of it, the body is not able to break down trimethylamine. See, normally trimethylamine goes through N-oxygenation to produce trimethylamine oxide. Without this oxidation process, food and other organic compounds essentially decompose in the body. Trimethylamine builds up, and that decomposing smell comes out of the person – through their breath and sweat. They end up smelling really fishy.
When someone doesn’t produce that enzyme, and therefore can’t break down trimethylamine, that means they have a disorder called TMAU (Trimethlyaminuria, or fish odor syndrome). It is a rare disorder that is devastating to the people who suffer with it. Especially kids, because other kids can be so mean. There are several websites out there that offer resources for sufferers of the disease. Genetic scientists are doing some research on the gene, trying to see what conditions are related to TMAU, and what other disorders could cause the symptoms. If the disorder isn’t genetic, it can sometimes be brought on by problems with the liver, especially hepatitis.
There are ways to manage the symptoms, but there is no cure for the disorder at this time. Some people just stay away from certain types of food and it reduces the smell. Others take low doses of antibiotic, or take a charcoal supplement to help with the oxidation process that is missing.
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Tags: antibioticdigestion problemsenzyme disorderfish odor syndromefishy odorfishy smellinggenetic disordershepatitishuman bodymissing enzymesorganic compoundsrare disorderTMAUtrimethylamineTrimethylaminuriatypes of food
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