Why in News?
Leprosy, scientifically known as Hansen’s disease, is a chronic infectious disease caused by the slow-growing bacterium Mycobacterium leprae. It primarily affects the skin, peripheral nerves, mucosal surfaces of the upper respiratory tract, and eyes.
Key Medical & Technical Information
- Transmission Mode: It spreads via airborne droplets from the nose and mouth during close, frequent, and prolonged contact with untreated individuals. It is not highly contagious and cannot be contracted through casual contact like shaking hands.
- Long Incubation Period: Symptoms develop very slowly. The incubation period ranges from 5 to 20 years, often making early detection difficult as the infection remains hidden.
- Core Symptoms: Characterised by pale or reddish skin patches with a distinct loss of sensation, numbness in hands and feet, muscle weakness, and enlarged peripheral nerves.
- 100% Curable: Leprosy is completely curable using Multi-Drug Therapy (MDT), a highly effective combination of three antibiotics: Dapsone, Rifampicin, and Clofazimine.
- Irreversible Damage: While MDT kills the bacteria and cures the active infection, it cannot reverse permanent physical deformities or nerve damage that occurred before starting treatment.
Government of India Initiatives
- Nikusth 2.0 Portal: A real-time digital surveillance database utilized under the National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP) to track case configurations, treatments, and vulnerable tribal groups.
- Leprosy Case Detection Campaigns (LCDC): Intensive, door-to-door screening drives executed across high-prevalence districts to actively seek out hidden community cases.
- Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP): Administration of a single preventive dose of Rifampicin (PEP-SDR) to healthy contacts of newly diagnosed patients to block the chain of active transmission.
- Shattering Stigma: Active deployment of the Sparsh Leprosy Awareness Campaign to combat deep-seated social discrimination and encourage early voluntary medical reporting.
Recent Global & India Progress
- Elimination Status: India achieved "elimination as a public health problem" (defined as a prevalence rate below 1 case per 10,000 people) at the national level in 2005, with current national levels sustained at 0.57 per 10,000 population.
- The Transmitting Burden: Despite macro elimination, India still accounts for over 50% of all global leprosy cases, reporting upwards of 1,00,000 new cases annually due to localized hyper-endemic pockets.
- Declining Numbers: Proactive screening has successfully reduced the proportion of child cases from 9.04% to 4.68% over the past decade, confirming a steady decline in active community transmission.
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