Position statement: LEPROSY: Diagnosis, treatment and follow-up.

Abstract

Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic infection caused by Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) or Mycobacterium lepromatosis (M. lepromatosis). In Europe, most of the leprosy cases are imported. However, occasionally a case is diagnosed in one of the old endemic foci. Leprosy is often not suspected because it is no longer emphasized in the medical curricula. Attention shifted from leprosy to tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus infections in the late 20th century, whereby the WHO leprosy programme was toned down in the conviction that leprosy was all but eliminated. The result of unawareness is a harmful doctor's delay. This paper focusses on clinical diagnosis, complications and treatment based on literature and experience. It mentions the value of laboratory tests in classification, follow-up and detection of relapses. It discusses the etiopathology. This is a position statement.