A new study has bolstered the medical use of maggots in cleaning wounds by removing dead and unhealthy tissues.

The study found that "maggot therapy," which is done by putting maggots into open flesh, could be a quick way to clean wounds. While the idea may sound repulsive, the research findings showed that the procedure may be useful in certain cases.

Researchers said that the maggot therapy may be useful in diabetes patients who need rapid control for their wounds, or those who need to undergo surgery but cannot be given anesthesia. But continuing the maggot therapy beyond one week is not of benefit, they added.

The medical use of maggots was approved in 2004 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to Dr. Robert Kirsner, a dermatologist at the University of Miami School of Medicine, who was not involved in the new study, however, only a small minority of patients with unhealing wounds receive the treatment.

Dr. Kirsner, who was not involved in the new study, said maggots secrete an enzyme that dissolves dead tissue but leaves healthy tissue alone.

"There is a gross factor to it," Kirsner said. "Patients have to be very psychologically strong," he said, noting that there are a few risks to the treatment.

The study involved about 100 men with wounds on their lower limbs, half of which received maggot therapy and half received surgical treatment. Neither the patients nor the doctor evaluating the wounds knew which therapy a patient received.

The percentage of dead tissue in the wounds of patients who received the maggot therapy was 54.5 percent after eight days, compared with 66.5 percent in patients who received surgery. But after 15 days and 30 days, the amount of dead tissue in the wounds was about the same for both groups.

Although there are few risks to the treatment, future research could determine whether the effects of maggot therapy can be improved using more maggots, and whether the increase in their number would be painful, the researchers said.

The study was published online in the journal Archives of Dermatology.