Maggot Therapy

Maggot therapy, also known as Maggot Debridement Therapy, is used to treat non-healing sores or wounds. Medical maggots are raised in sterile settings, are disinfected, and are used while they are still immature, meaning that they will not be able to reproduce in the wound. Maggot therapy is useful because it selectively targets dead (narcotic) tissue while leaving healthy tissue completely untouched. Maggots also clean wounds by disinfecting the area. The debridement also helps keep gangrene from setting in, lessening the chance that amputation will be needed; the rates of limbs saved through the therapy have been reported to be as high as 70%.

Medical studies have also suggested that maggot therapy decreases the level of pain felt by the patient. Last year, a clinical study proved that maggot debridement therapy healed wounds infected with MRSA, the multi-antibiotic resistant staphylococcus strain which can cause “flesh eating” disease. Prior to this, the only way to halt the progression of the flesh-eating bacteria was to amputate the infected area. Last, Maggot Debridement Therapy is said to stimulate healing of the wound. When a doctor recommends Maggot Debridement Therapy, the medical maggots are gathered and prepared for use.

The maggots are placed inside the wound and then are covered with medical dressings to prevent the migration of maggots. The wound cannot be dressed too tightly, because the maggots need a supply of air. The maggots are generally kept in the wound for one to two days. In 2004, the US FDA approved the use of maggots for debridement therapy. Now, the FDA regulates the types and uses of medical maggots. Although the use of maggots for wound debridement is approved, it is often still considered an option of last resort. Even with all of these technical advancements and clinical trials proving the efficiency of Maggot Debridement Therapy, many are still disturbed at the thought of maggots in their wound.