Every two minutes, someone
is diagnosed with leprosy.
Often believed to have been
eradicated, leprosy still
occurs in more than 100
countries worldwide.
If you have pale-colored skin
sores, lumps, or bumps that
do not go away after several
weeks or months you need to
contact your doctor!
Leprosy is an infectious disease that
causes severe, disfiguring skin sores
and nerve damage in the arms and legs
:
Leprosy can also affect he eyes
and the thin tissue lining the
inside of the nose :
Tissue Breakdown
Deep tissue is fatigued by repetitive stress and releases chemical messengers.
Chemical messengers are released but damaged nerves cannot relay message to
brain.
No action is taken to rest endangered part.
Fatigue becomes too great and tissue cells are destroyed.
Enzymes released from destroyed tissues stimulate repair response
(inflammation).
Inflammation causes edema which blocks the supply of nutrients and oxygen.
Starved tissue breaks down, releases more chemical messengers and
inflammation increases.
The amount of broken down tissue and plasma becomes too great to be confined.
Skin bursts to release breakdown products and an ulcer is formed.
Other signs of leprosy can be:











Skin lesions that may be faded/discolored
Growths on the skin
Thick, stiff or dry skin
Severe pain
Numbness on affected areas of the skin
Muscle weakness or paralysis (especially in the
hands and feet)
Eye problems that may lead to blindness
Enlarged nerves (especially those around the
elbow and knee)
A stuffy nose
Nosebleeds
Ulcers on the soles of feet
Leprosy is caused by a slowgrowing type of bacteria called
Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae).
Leprosy is also known as Hansen's
disease, after the scientist who
discovered M. leprae in 1873.
Treatment

A number of different antibiotics (including
dapsone, rifampin, clofazamine,
fluoroquinolones, macrolides, and
minocycline) are used to kill the bacteria
that cause the disease. More than one
antibiotic is often given together.

Aspirin, prednisone, or thalidomide is used
to control inflammation.
If leprosy is left untreated it can cause
major damage to the hands, feet, eyes,
and face as such in these severe cases :
Facts:
- The bacteria attack nerve endings and
destroy the body's ability to feel pain and
injury. Without feeling pain, people injure
themselves and the injuries can become
infected, resulting in tissue loss. Fingers and
toes become shortened and deformed as
the cartilage is absorbed into the body.
Repeated injury and infection of numb areas
in the fingers or toes can cause the bones to
shorten. The tissues around them shrink,
making them short.
Official figures show that almost
182, 000 people, mainly in Asia and Africa,
were affected at the beginning of 2012, with
approximately 219 000 new cases reported
during 2011.
Leprosy can remain undetected for
some time due to the bacteria lying dormant
in the host.
ATTENTION
If you have any knowledge of an individual
having this condition, do not waste any
more time and contact a doctor.
Or the CDC…
Sources





http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/ar
ticle/001347.htm
http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-andtreatments/guide/leprosy-symptomstreatments-history
http://www.cdc.gov/leprosy/symptoms/inde
x.html
http://www.ilep.org.uk/fileadmin/uploads/Do
cuments/Non-ILEP_Publications/wcpal.pdf
http://www.leprosy.org/leprosy-faqs