#IDFridays Week 49: Leprosy

Home #IDFridays #IDFridays Week 49: Leprosy

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There are so many myths about leprosy. Does it cause your body parts to fall off? Does it make you blind? Learn the facts below

Photo Credits: Leprosy Mission, Turing Foundation

Name
Leprosy, now known as Hansen’s disease (named after G. A. Hansen who discovered it in 1873)

Transmission

A chronic infection caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae that mainly affects the eyes, skin, upper respiratory tract, and brain/spinal cord nerves
The bacteria spreads from person to person but the exact method of transmission is not known, though prolonged contact with an infected person seems necessary for the disease to spread
- Scientists believe it can spread through body fluids (ex: when an infected person sneezes or coughs into the air and a healthy person breathes in that air)
- It is also possible that it spreads through insects
- Armadillos are the only other animal that can carry the bacteria and they can pass it to humans
It affects people of all ages
It is not highly infectious

Geography
Worldwide

Incubation Period
2 – 20 years (the bacteria multiply very slowly)

Signs and Symptoms
Up to 95% of the global population may be naturally immune to leprosy so they can carry the bacteria without showing symptoms

Severe pain
Muscle weakness
Skin lesions
Nosebleeds
Paralysis in hands or feet
Thick/stiff skin
Foot ulcers
Skin growths
Numbness
Enlarged nerves around elbow and knee
Weak eyesight
Blindness

The numbness and nerve damage often prevent patients from noticing when they have been injured

Diagnosis
Clinical symptoms and signs and/or skin biopsy and smears of the lesions

Treatment

Combination antibiotic treatment for 6 months to 2 years
Anti-inflammatory drugs for the nerve pain

Prognosis

Leprosy is curable and if treatment is given early, disability can be avoided
Any nerve damage is permanent

Prevention: What Can You Do?
Avoid contact with the body fluids of an infected person

Leprosy In the News

Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/leprosy/
http://www.who.int/lep/leprosy/en/