[오늘의 키워드] leprosy
The 29th was World Leprosy Day. Hansen’s disease, also known as leprosy and leprosy in the past, is one of the oldest recorded diseases in human history, but prejudice has long discriminated against it. In the past, it was considered a hereditary disease or, in many ancient cultures, believed to be caused by impurity, filth, or sin.
The first record of Hansen’s disease was found in India around 600 BC, and is often mentioned in the Christian scriptures, the Bible. In the case of Korea, there is a record that around 100 people were accommodated and treated during the Joseon Dynasty in 1451 AD.
The first person to try a modern medical approach to leprosy was Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen (1841-1912), a Norwegian doctor. Hansen insisted that Hansen’s disease was an infectious disease, not a genetic disease, and accordingly introduced infectious diseases such as quarantine and disinfection to significantly reduce the number of Hansen’s disease cases in Norway at the time.
Hansen’s disease is a chronic infectious immune disease mainly affecting the skin and peripheral nerves caused by Mycobacterium leprae. The incubation period varies from 9 months to 20 years.
Depending on the type of pathological changes that appear on the skin, it is mainly divided into two types: leprosy and tubercular leprosy. In the case of leprosy, pathological changes such as nodules (a rash with a diameter of 5 mm or more) or papules (a rash with a diameter of 5 mm or less from the size of a millet to the size of a pea) appear widely on the skin of the whole body symmetrically on both sides. Nuclear leprosy is characterized by one or more well-defined dermatitis that spreads asymmetrically throughout the body, and the affected area of skin becomes numb or n hypersensitive. Tuberculous leprosy is particularly severe in the peripheral nerve invasion.
The contagiousness of leprosy is very low, and it is hardly spread at the level of everyday life, such as simple contact, use of the same space, and mosquito bites. It spreads through long-term close contact with family members, and certain genotypes are known to be more susceptible to infection. There is no vaccine, but BCG, the tuberculosis vaccine, can prevent some Hansen’s disease due to the similar characteristics of Leprosy and Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Unlike prejudice, Hansen’s disease is currently easily treatable and curable. It is treated with a combination of three drugs: dapsone, cropazimine, and rifampicin. If used at the right time, the leprosy is killed early and Hansen’s disease is cured. Treatment is generally required for as little as two to several years. Hansen’s disease patients who are treated or only have the after-effects after Hansen’s disease is completely gone lose their infectious power.
The content was compiled with reference to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Korean Hansen Welfare Association, and the Seocho-gu Public Health Center.
