Pain in Hansen's disease patients

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The involvement of peripheral nerves is a major characteristic of Hansen's disease and may lead to physical incapacity and deformity. This study aimed at evaluating the clinical-epidemiological characteristics of Hansen's disease patients with pain complaints to develop health actions directed to early diagnosis and treatment of the disease. METHOD: Retrospective study in 732 records of patients with presumed or confirmed Hansen's disease diagnosis, treated in the Dermatological Reference Center of Fortaleza from January to December 2008. Physical incapacity, presence of eye deformities such as lagophtalmos, trichiasis, corneal opacity and decreased visual acuity, claw hand, drop hands or feet, ankle contracture and bone reabsorption were considered. RESULTS: From all evaluated patients, 65.9% had loss of tactile, thermal or painful sensitivity, indicating involvement of skin fibers; 4.31% of them had severe pain at palpation of some nerve, especially tibial (50%), ulnar (43.8%), radial (21.9%) and fibular (21.9%). Initial symptoms for these patients were white or reddish spots (56.2%), decreased sensitivity (40.6%), decreased muscular strength (15.6%) and physical incapacity (12.5%). CONCLUSION: The incidence of skin manifestations was more prevalent, followed by neurological manifestations being radial, fibular, ulnar and tibial nerves the most affected in patients with pain complaints.