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They return to the insanities of the 1950s. Next RFJ Jr will require doctors to use leeches.
Trump will push to get fluoride out of drinking water, RFK Jr. says https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/11/03/rfk-jr-trump-fluoride-water/
@jeffjarvis @gnoll110 Medical leeches are in fact still a Thing in surgical wound care—they're very good at debriding ulcerated tissue (they'll eat dead tissue but leave healthy tissue alone)!
Maybe RFK will bring back cupping and bleeding to rebalance the humours instead?
@cstross @jeffjarvis @gnoll110 I thought that was maggots 
don’t leeches just draw blood?
@CatherineFlick @cstross @jeffjarvis @gnoll110 pretty sure you are correct. At least in my brief stint in a surgical ward, little packets with maggots were used for wound care.
@CatherineFlick @cstross @jeffjarvis @gnoll110 leeches might be used for other things though?
@CatherineFlick @jeffjarvis @gnoll110 You're right: I haven't had enough morning caffeine yet!
(Leeches are just a good source of anticoagulants. Sometimes used in dermatology surgery IIRC to prevent delicate skin grafts from scarring.)
@cstross @CatherineFlick @jeffjarvis @gnoll110
Leeches are good where blood flow, I think esp venous return is compromised, like with reattached limbs & fingers & whatnot. Yes, one can get medical grade leeches! (Very expensive, I imagine.)