Aeromonas septicemia after medicinal leech use following replantation of severed digits

Medicinal leeches are used to control venous congestion. Aeromonas in the leech gut are essential for digestion of blood. This case report describes a patient who had Aeromonas bacteremia develop after leeching. He had an injury to his hand that required replantation of his thumb. Following the surgery, leech therapy was started with ampicillin-sulbactam prophylaxis. Sepsis developed. Blood cultures were positive for Aeromonas that were resistant to ampicillin-sulbactam. The antibiotic was changed to ciprofloxacin on the basis of the sensitivity profile of the organisms. Cultures from the leech bathwater confirmed it as the source of the Aeromonas. Clinicians who use leech therapy must be aware that leeches can harbor Aeromonas species resistant to accepted prophylactic antibiotics and that sepsis may occur.

Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.

Patient developed Aeromonas septicemia after leech therapy for thumb replantation despite ampicillin-sulbactam prophylaxis; cultures from leech bathwater confirmed it as the infection source, antibiotic changed to ciprofloxacin based on sensitivity.

Explore cómo esta investigación se conecta con la práctica clínica

More peer-reviewed studies in Seguridad y control de infecciones.

• Leech-Assisted Flap Salvage — Systematic Review of 277 Cases — Whitaker et al. (2012)
• Effects of hirudotherapy on liver functions, lipid profile, and insulin sensitivity in rats with metabolic syndrome — Bilden A et al. (2026)
• AIF-1 and RNASET2 Play Complementary Roles in the Innate Immune Response of Medicinal Leech — Baranzini N et al. (2019)
• [Hirudo medicinalis-leech applications in plastic and reconstructive microsurgery--a literature review] — Knobloch K et al. (2007)
• Bacterial symbioses of the medicinal leech Hirudo verbana — Nelson M, Graf J (2012)
• Leech related Aeromonas complex infection after reconstruction with a microvascular forearm flap — Beger B, von Loewenich F, Goetze E, Moergel M, Walter C (2016)
• Outcomes of flap salvage with medicinal leech therapy — Nguyen MQ et al. (2012)
• The role of leech water sampling in choice of prophylactic antibiotics in medical leech therapy — Wilmer A et al. (2013)
• The development and application of mini-barcodes from mitochondrial DNA for identifying medicinal leeches from traditional medicines — Liu Y et al. (2025)
• Insights into gut microbiota communities of Poecilobdella manillensis, a prevalent Asian medicinal leech — Meng F et al. (2022)

Browse all ASH-analysed research →