Foreign bodies in the upper respiratory tract are one of the most difficult otolaryngological emergencies; leeches are a very rare foreign bodies in the world. We report the case of a 70-year-old man with no past medical history presenting with laryngeal dyspnea associated with low abundant paroxysmal hemoptysis. The patient underwent nasofibroscopy showing the presence of a living and mobile organism at the subglottic level evoking a leech. Extraction was carried out under local anesthesia using laryngoscope and Magill forceps. The presence of a leech as a foreign body in the upper respiratory tract should be suspected in patients with a recent history of consumption of non-potable water.

Key words: Leech, dyspnea, haemoptysis