[Contact dermatitis with Hirudo medicinalis].

Ann Dermatol Venereol

Service de Dermatologie, CHU Dupuytren, 2, avenue Martin-Luther-King, 87000 Limoges.

Published: December 2002

Background: Hirudine is the first natural anti-coagulant ever described. It is used for its anti-coagulant properties in plastic surgery or for the treatment of post-phlebitic diseases. Natural hirudine is extracted from the saliva of the Hirudo medicinalis leech, but it can also be found in crushed leech and included in a cream (Hirucrème). Side effects to hirudine are considered to be rare.

Case Report: We report a contact eczema caused by an extract from the medicinal Hirudo medicinalis leech. This was confirmed by the patch tests. However, we noticed a negativity of these tests with two analogs of the recombinant hirudine.

Discussion: Several cases of contact dermatitis with Hirucreme have been described. The analogs of recombinant hirudine, which share similar biological activity, have a very close molecular structure. They are indicated via the systemic route for thrombopenia related to heparin for the prevention of severe thromboses. The negative patch tests does not allow definite conclusion, but they prove that these molecules do not always lead to cross-allergies.

Download full-text PDF

Source

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

hirudo medicinalis
8
medicinalis leech
8
patch tests
8
analogs recombinant
8
[contact dermatitis
4
dermatitis hirudo
4
hirudo medicinalis]
4
medicinalis] background
4
hirudine
4
background hirudine
4

Similar Publications

Immunomodulatory effects of medicinal leech saliva extract on in vitro activated macrophages.

Immunol Res

December 2024

Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Biruni University, Istanbul, 34010, Turkey.

Leech therapy has been utilized in modern and traditional medicine. Leech saliva contains versatile peptides and molecules that can exert anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, anti-coagulant, and analgesic activities on the patients. The active components and molecular mechanism of action of these components should be deciphered properly in order to generate biotechnological drug candidates by recombinant production of the leech saliva peptides.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Haematophagous leeches rely on a broad variety of bioactive compounds to secure a sufficient blood meal from their vertebrate prey. Both the primary (platelet aggregation) and secondary (blood coagulation) haemostasis are the main targets of action. The platelet aggregation inhibitor decorsin was first described in the North American leech, Macrobdella decora Say, 1824, whereas the bivalent thrombin inhibitor hirudin was originally identified in the European medicinal leech, Hirudo medicinalis Linnaeus, 1758.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hyaluronic acid (HA) fillers are a relatively safe and effective means of cosmetic treatment for the face; however, as the numbers of both patients and injectors continue to rise, reports of adverse events (AEs) and ischemia are increasing. Although visual complications and stroke are the most-feared AEs, skin and underlying tissue necrosis is far more common and can be catastrophic. HA can be dissolved with hyaluronidase, but this does not always resolve ischemia.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Evaluation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) toxic effects on the acute inflammatory response in the medicinal leech Hirudoverbana.

Chemosphere

October 2024

Department of Science and Technological Innovation, University of Eastern Piedmont, 11 Teresa Michel Avenue, 15121, Alessandria, Italy. Electronic address:

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) substances are a large group of chemicals with elevated water and oil-resistance properties, widely implicated in various applicative fields. Due to the extensive use and high resistance to degradative factors, these compounds pose a significant risk of environmental spreading, bioaccumulating also in living organisms. In this context, despite many researches have been performed to demonstrate "legacy" PFAS harmfulness, only few data are still available about all the emerging fluorinated molecules, industrially introduced to replace the previous ones.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Medicinal leeches ( spp.) have been used for therapeutic purposes in humans since ancient times. Because of their growth conditions, leeches carry certain bacteria and endosymbionts (e.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!