Leprosy

What’s In A Name? Common Name of Disease: Leprosy Sometimes Called: Hansen’s Disease, because the bacteria that causes it was discovered by Armauer Hansen in 1873. Scientific Name of Disease: Microbacterium leprae humanum There are two types of Leprosy, lepromatous and tuberculoid.

Causes of Leprosy: Leprosy is caused by the organism Mycobacterium leprae. Leprosy is not very contagious, but it is hard to recognize symptoms because they can take three to ten years to appear. Children are more vulnerable than adults to contracting the disease. Leprosy is most prevalent in the tropics and third world countries where there are poor living conditions and limited access to medical care.

Symptoms: Skin lesions that are lighter than the normal color of the victim’s skin. The lesions have decreased sensation to touch, heat, or pain, and do not heal after several weeks or even months. As the disease progresses, patients lose their sense of touch in their fingers and toes leaving them open to repeated burns and cuts which then get infected. The effects of repeated damage will cause fingers to shorten and curve, resulting in a claw-like appearance.

Tests & Treatments: Many physicians are not familiar enough with the disease to make an accurate diagnosis. Therefore, many physicians mistake the skin lesions of leprosy for a fungus or ringworm and treat it with a topical cream. A Lepromin skin test can be used to tell the difference between the two types of Leprosy. A number of different antibiotics are used to kill the bacteria that causes the disease. Aspirin, prednisone, or thalidomide are used to control inflammation.

Recovery: Early recognition is important. Early treatment limits damage by the disease, renders the person noninfectious, and allows for a normal lifestyle. Although leprosy can be fully treated with medicine when diagnosed in early stages, once the disease has advanced, nerve damage cannot be reversed.

Recent Outbreaks: Approximately 100 cases per year are diagnosed in the United States. Most cases are limited to the South, California, Hawaii, and U.S. island possessions. The emergence of drug-resistant Mycobacterium leprae, as well as increased numbers of cases worldwide, have led to global concern about this disease.

The Global Leprosy Situation as of the year 2000 Recent Outbreaks: In 2000, there were an estimated 1.3 million cases worldwide, mainly in India, Brazil and countries of South-East Asia and Africa. The number of new cases detected worldwide is approximately 680,000 per year. The Global Leprosy Situation as of the year 2000

Images of Leprosy:

Bibliography: Werner, Kenneth M. "MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia: Leprosy." MedlinePlus Health Information from the National Library of Medicine. 25 July 2007. National Library of Medicine and N.I.M.H. 17 Nov. 2008 <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/ 001347.htm>. American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. "Forgotten, But Not Gone: Leprosy Still Present In The US." ScienceDaily 9 November 2008. 17 November 2008 <http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2008/11/081107143748.htm>.