Wound healing potential of bark paste of Pongamia pinnata along with hirudotherapy: A case report
Case report published in Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine (2021)
Abstract
Chronic wound is one of a leading cause of amputation worldwide. Successful management of chronic wound has become a challenge to all existing medical systems across the world. Sri Lankan Traditional and Ayurvedic medicine reveals many promising herbal and alternative remedies for chronic wounds. We hereby report a successfully managed case of an 80-year-old female patient suffering from a chronic wound for two years, when presenting has advised for amputation of the leg. The treatment protocol included the application of hirudotherapy along with the bark paste of Pongamia pinnata followed by Flueggea leucopyrus with recommended other external and internal remedies. At the end of the treatment protocol, pain, exudates, odor, burning sensation, and itching were reduced completely while swelling and wound size was reduced remarkably and showed a significant healing in the wounded area.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Summary
A case report describes successful management of a two-year chronic leg wound in an 80-year-old woman using hirudotherapy combined with Pongamia pinnata bark paste and Flueggea leucopyrus, achieving complete reduction of pain and exudate.
Why This Matters for Hirudotherapy
This case report describes an 80-year-old woman with a two-year chronic leg wound, advised for amputation, who was treated with hirudotherapy combined with Pongamia pinnata bark paste and other Ayurvedic remedies; the authors report that pain, exudate, odor, burning, and itching resolved and that swelling and wound size were markedly reduced with significant healing. It is of interest because chronic non-healing wounds are a setting where leeching's local decongestant and microcirculatory effects are biologically plausible, and where amputation-avoiding alternatives are clinically valued. The decisive caveat is that this is a single uncontrolled case using a multi-component regimen, so the contribution of hirudotherapy specifically cannot be isolated and no general efficacy can be inferred.
Citation
Reference (Vancouver style)
Balasooriya D, Karunarathna C, Uluwaduge I. Wound healing potential of bark paste of Pongamia pinnata along with hirudotherapy: A case report. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2021;12(2):384-388. doi:10.1016/j.jaim.2021.01.014. PMID: 33814265
Bibliographic details (authors, volume, pages, DOI) are taken from the PubMed record.
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