FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT LEPROSY

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT LEPROSY



FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS about Leprosy / Hansen’s Disease

THE LEPROSY MISSION INTERNATIONAL
80 Windmill Road, Brentford, Middlesex,
Britain, U.K. TW8 OQH


Email :- tlmaust@leprosymission.org.au






1. WHAT IS LEPROSY ? - Leprosy is a slightly contageous disease caused by a tiny rod-like germ called Mycobacterium Leprae (M.leprae) . It was first discovered by Dr. G.A. Hansen in 1873.

2. HOW MANY PEOPLE SUFFER FROM LEPROSY TODAY ? Nobody knows exactly, because figures from countries where leprosy is a problem are both incomplete and unreliable. Approximately 6.5 million is a conservative estimate of the number affected by leprosy and only one in four is getting regular, effective treatment.

3. WHERE DOES LEPROSY OCCUR ? In practically every country in the world. However, most of the sufferers are to be found in the populous countries of South East Asia, Africa and South America. There are 3.5 million in India.

4. IS LEPROSY HEREDITARY ? No, but infants may catch the disease from a parent and show the first signs of infection after an incubation period of from two to five years.

5. SHOULD LEPROSY SUFFERERS BE SEGREGATED ? It is not necessary, advisable or even possible to segregate sufferers from leprosy. A high percentage of cases are unable to pass the disease on and the most contageous types are the hardest to recognise. Forcible segregation usually leads to concealment which makes early, effective treatment impossible and aggravates the problem.

6. ARE THERE DIFFERENT KINDS OF LEPROSY ? Yes. But this depends on a person’s resistance to the disease, not the type of germ. There is only one leprosy germ, but people react to it in different ways. Many people resist leprosy so well that they will never develop clinical signs even though exposed to active cases for long periods. If a person has no resistance, the germ multiplies freely in the skin, the lining of the nose and even deep in organs like the liver. This is lepromatous, “multibacilliary” leprosy. Other types are:- tuberculoid, borderline, indeterminate and polyneuritic, which are “paucibacilliary”, and each with their own set of symptoms.

7. WHAT ARE THE EARLY SIGNS OF LEPROSY ? The early signs and symptoms can vary considerably, depending on the patient’s resistance to the disease. They can be easily missed or mistaken for some other disease by the untrained person. People with lepromatous leprosy usually develop a skin rash or nodules while tuberculoid leprosy might first show itself as an area of numbness or “pins and needles”. Dark-skinned people sometimes have patches which are paler in colour than their normal skin. There is no one “first sign” of leprosy and careful examination by a competent doctor with the examination of skin smears under a microscope are necessary for correct diagnosis

3. HOW IS LEPROSY CAUGHT ? Scientifically speaking, it is almost impossible to prove how the leprosy germ gets from one person to another, but people with lepromatous leproy expel large numbers of germs from their nose and mouth. It may be that they get into the body the same way. Other theories are that blood-sucking insects and close skin to skin contact could be ways of transmitting the disease. The discharge from ulcers on the hands and feet very rarely contains live leprosy germs.

4. CAN LEPROSY BE CURED ? Yes, it can and the earlier the treatment is begun, the better the hope of a complete recovery. The most severe kinds of leprosy take much longer to cure than those of types which occur in people with some degree of resistance. However, even after a few days of multi-drug treatment, all patients are rendered non-contageous and they can no longer pass the disease on to others.

5. WHAT MEDICINES ARE USED FOR LEPROSY TREATMENT ? Until recently, the most commonly used drug has been “diamino-diphenyl-sulphone” (DDS or Dapsone) . But because of the widespread incidence of Dapsone resistance over recent years, the World Health Organisation now recommends using several drugs in combination for the treatment of leprosy. The most useful of these are - Rifampicin, Clofazamine and Dapsone. This multi-drug-therapy (MDT) greatly increases the cost of treatment, but also considerably reduces the length of time a patient needs treatment.

6. CAN LEPROSY BE PREVENTED ? So far, no specific vaccine against leprosy is available. The best way of preventing the transmission of the disease is to reduce the infectivity of all contageous cases as quickly as possible.

7. WHY DO PATIENTS WITH LEPROSY BECOME CRIPPLED ? Not all patients become crippled. Many become healed without any treatment at all and others who have been diagnosed and treated in the early stages of the disease suffer no deformity. The main cause of deformity in leprosy patients is nerve damage. This occurs because the leprosy germs have a peculiar liking for nerve tissue and multiply freely between nerve fibres. When the leprosy germs die or are killed by the medicines, the resulting inflammation compresses and destroys these delicate fibres with more or less complete loss of function. So feeling is lost and muscles are paralysed. The end result is ulceration and deformity.

8. CAN ANYTHING BE DONE FOR THE DEFORMITIES THAT ARISE FROM NEGLECTED LEPROSY ? Yes, the techniques of reconstructive surgery may be used to help restore function and appearance to tissue damaged by leprosy. Deformities of hands, feet and face may be corrected, but no operation can restore lost sensation. Even when nerves are partly destroyed, the patients must be educated in the careful use of their insensitive hands and feet so that they do not injure themselves.

9. ARE OTHER FORMS OF TREATMENT USED IN LEPROSY ? Physiotherapy is employed to maintain the mobility and strength of partly paralysed muscles, and to educate the patients in the prevention of deformities. Occupational therapy can teach patients how to gain their livlihood without damaging their hands and feet

10. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PATIENTS ARE CURED ? If, as is now usually the case, they have been receiving treatment at an outpatient clinic, they carry on with normal daily activities, reporting for re-examination at prescribed intervals. If they have been in hospital for a long time, they may face a difficult period of social and domestic re-adjustment. In a few favoured countries, they may be able to obtain work in some kind of sheltered workshop.

11. WHAT IF PATIENTS ARE UNABLE TO EARN A LIVING ? Many former leprosy patients are so crippled permanently that they will need food and shelter for their remaining days. The size of this problem is such that all available resources could, in some countries, be swallowed up in simply caring for this large group of unfortunate people. If this course were taken, then, many suffering from untreated leprosy would, in time, develop crippling deformities. However, Christians cannot neglect those who, having caught leprosy before treatment became available, are now hopelessly crippled. The opportunity for compassionate service constitutes a real challenge to Christians.

12. HOW DID THE LEPROSY MISSION (TLM) BEGIN ? In 1874, a group of Christians in Dublin pledged to support a young schoolmaster in India. Wellesley Bailey was giving his spare time in service to a group of leprosy sufferers in Ambala, in the Punjab. Soon, he was giving all his time to this work and more money was coming from the homeland in support of this and allied ventures. So the work grew, and today, support for the Mission’s work in over thirty countries comes from all over the world.

13. HOW DOES THE LEPROSY MISSION WORK ? Besides maintaining its own centres or personnel in India, Africa, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Korea and China, the Mission also aids substantially the leprosy work in many Christian churches and missionary societies in Africa, India and other parts of Asia.

14. WHAT ARE THE NEEDS OF T.L.M. ? It requires such trained and dedicated workers as doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and administrators, to serve in the centres owned and aided by TLM. It also relies on men and women who, by their prayers and generous giving, enable the work to continue and expand.

THE LEPROSY MISSION

is a Member of :-

THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF ANTI-LEPROSY ASSOCIATIONS (ILEP)

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THIS SITE WAS LAST UPDATED ON 20th. JAN 2001


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