State offers preventive care to 135 in contact with leprosy patients

Health officials from the state government have treated 135 people from across the state who were in close contact with leprosy patients, in order to protect them from the disease.

The treatment, which began in November 2018, involved administering a single dose of the antibiotic rifampicin, health officials said.

The prophylactic (preventive) treatment was made possible after 42 out of 52 patients, detected with leprosy during a statewide campaign last year, consented to reveal their infection status and allowed health officials to approach their family, friends and colleagues who they regularly made physical contact with.

Leprosy, caused by Mycobacterium leprae, is an airborne infection like tuberculosis and infects the nerves and the skin. Congested localities in the city turn into ideal spots for the disease’s transmission.

Prophylactic treatment for leprosy, experts said, helps prevent its transmission in nearly six out of 10 people.

The treatment protects them from the disease for up to two years. However, it is not administered to people with TB, hepatitis and children aged below two years.

Dr Raju Jotkar, assistant director with the state health services, said patients’ willingness to reveal their infection status helps public health officials to ensure the infection does not spread in the community.

“Leprosy is a sensitive issue and there is still a lot of stigma attached to it. Patients go to facilities that are far away from their homes to take medicines so that their neighbours don’t get to know about their condition,” Dr Jotkar said.

The state department, ahead of World Leprosy Day on January 30 this year, published data that revealed more hidden leprosy cases were reported in 2018 (362) in Mumbai than the previous year (326).

Dr Vivek Pai of the Bombay Leprosy Project, a non-governmental organisation that has been working for 40 years to detect and treat leprosy cases in the city, said prophylaxis was made a part of the Leprosy Case Detection Campaign, a Central government initiative.

“As more patients are being traced under the campaign, the coverage for prophylaxis is also increasing,” Pai said.

First Published: May 27, 2019 01:26 IST