前苏联共合国乔治亚这一阵子流行用水蛭治疗疾病,以往欧洲人会用水蛭治疗痔疮,乔治亚人把这项疗法发扬光大,用来治疗其他疾病。' W7 M# O" p. s5 }5 `
8 J# h0 a; p( o$ K2 z& l 乔治亚很多诊所都提供水蛭疗法,病人得先跟诊所买一只水蛭,更年期妇女先把水蛭放在脖子上,经过一、二十分钟,水蛭吸完血,身体膨胀4倍,就可以取下,接着医师再把另外2只水蛭放在这名妇女上下牙龈上,等吸完血再取出,医师在患者伤口上贴上绷带,就算完成治疗。接受过治疗的妇女说,她们在更年期会出现的潮红和盗汗都有明显改善。rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de( J g* A* M, F3 g6 G
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另外,有一些高血压或是经常性头痛病人,也会用水蛭疗法降低血压,或是治疗头痛。一名医师说,不但乔治亚人用水蛭治病,乌克兰、波兰、甚至德国,也有不少人接受这种疗法。5 f$ |" ~$ Y8 s6 \/ a# V; i, z
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; {# _( ?- f2 d( e& q ) R3 H$ ^. @' |9 ^+ Y6 H人在德国 社区 " l3 C0 T- ^2 P: x+ q/ ?Women turn to leeches in Tbilisi 22 June 2011 + M1 v1 e+ S' A- @% R2 T ' a/ o( b3 n ^& |! e5 g- M u N) n: KLeeches have been used in medicine for thousands of years. By attaching themselves to the body, and sucking blood from a patient, they were thought to bring health benefits. 0 p. U' G7 J! m8 z" C9 }4 }1 z人在德国 社区rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de) u3 Y) ]- ~. S I" d: I4 n
The idea being that disease could be banished by releasing the infected blood. 8 ?7 \1 H I+ R+ }4 Grs238848.rs.hosteurope.de 6 N# X" j: T7 Z c' oThat idea fell out of fashion during the 20th century, with the discovery of modern drugs. But today, as interest in traditional medicine grows, they are making a comeback - particularly in the former Soviet State of Georgia. + X$ Q! \, W& ?- G. b9 f. J人在德国 社区人在德国 社区% t! o( A. Z( a
Damien McGuinness in the capital Tbilisi has been finding out why.