Kaya et al. Journal of Medical Case Reports 2011, 5:172 http://www.jmedicalcasereports.com/content/5/1/172 by applying pressure with sterile gauze upon the wound on her first admission. The bleeding stopped. The patient was admitted again to the emergency room with recurrent bleeding after four hours. Hemostasis was achieved by vein ligation under local anesthesia. Conclusions Leech bite can cause prolonged bleeding. It may even result in death due to blood loss. Leech bite should be evaluated as a special injury with the risk of prolonged bleeding. Consent Written informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this case report and any accompany- ing images. A copy of the written consent is available for review by the Editor-in-Chief of this journal. Authors’ contributions BK performed the surgery. BK, NEB, OB, HA, KM analyzed and interpreted the clinical data, and BK was a major contributor to writing the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript. Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Received: 21 October 2010 Accepted: 6 May 2011 Published: 6 May 2011 References 1. Conforti ML, Connor NP, Heisey DM, Hartig GK: Evaluation of performance characteristics of the medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis) for the treatment of venous congestion. Plast Reconstr Surg 2002, 109:228-235. 2. Munro R, Jones CP, Sawyer RT: Calin - a platelet adhesion inhibitor from the saliva of the medicinal leech. Blood Coagul Fibrinol 1991, 2:179-184. 3. Kruger C, Malleyeck I, Olsen OH: Aquatic leech infestation: a rare cause of severe anemia in an adolescent Tanzanian girl. Eur J Pediatr 2004, 163:297-299. 4. Bergua A, Vizmanas F, Monzon FJ, Blasco RM: Unavoidable epistaxis in the nasal infection of leeches. Acta Otorrinolaringol Esp 1993, 44:391-393. 5. Raj SM, Radzi M, Tee MH: Severe rectal bleeding due to leech bite. Am J Gastroenterol 2000, 95:1607. 6. Hamid MS, Mohd Nar GR: Severe urological complication of leech bite in the tropics. Br J Urol 1996, 77:164-165. 7. Cundoll DB, Whitehead SM, Hechtel FO: Severe anaemia and death due to pharyngeal leech Myxobdella africana. Trans R SOC Trop Med Hyg 1986, 80:940-944. 8. Bove CM, Casey B, Marder VJ: DDAVP reduces bleeding during continued hirudin administration in the rabbit. Thromb Haemost 1996, 75:471-475. doi:10.1186/1752-1947-5-172 Cite this article as: Kaya et al.: Prolonged venous bleeding due to traditional treatment with leech bite: a case report. Journal of Medical Case Reports 2011 5:172. Page 3 of 3 Submit your next manuscript to BioMed Central and take full advantage of: • Convenient online submission • Thorough peer review • No space constraints or color ﬁgure charges • Immediate publication on acceptance • Inclusion in PubMed, CAS, Scopus and Google Scholar • Research which is freely available for redistribution Submit your manuscript at www.biomedcentral.com/submit