Health and Human Services

HANSEN'S DISEASE (LEPROSY)

The primary goal of the Hansen's disease Program is to prevent deformity and disability from Hansen's disease through early diagnosis and treatment.

Houston Hansen Clinic - call to obtain care, for referrals or for more information - 832.393.4804 or 832.393.5173

Hansen’s disease (Leprosy) is a bacterial disease of the skin and nerves. Early signs or symptoms may include:

A rash on the trunk of the body and/or extremities
Reddish or pale colored skin patches which do not itch and which may have lost some feeling
Skin patches which get larger or do not go away, despite medical treatment
Bumps and thickening of the skin, especially on the face, ears and the extremities
Loss of feeling or weakness of the fingers or toes
A painful nerve or weak muscles of the lower arm or leg
Unexplained tingling or numbness in the extremities

The Hansen’s disease bacteria infect skin and sometimes other tissues, including the eye, the mucosa of the upper respiratory tract (the nose) and sometimes the testes. Hansen disease always involves the peripheral nerves. If untreated nerve damage can result in crippling of hands and feet and even blindness. Early diagnosis and treatment are the keys to preventing Hansen disease-related disabilities.

It is difficult to contract Hansen Disease even for the small percentage of people who have no protection from the germ that causes Hansen’s disease. Diagnosis in the U.S. is often delayed because health care providers are unaware of Hansen’s disease (leprosy) and its symptoms. Although the mode of transmission of Hansen disease remains uncertain, most investigators think that the bacteria, M. leprae is usually spread from person to person in respiratory droplets. The odds for family contacts of leprosy patients to develop leprosy are thought to be 3-10 times higher than for those of other people.

One in six armadillos found in Texas and Louisiana coastal marshes harbor leprosy. Leprosy infected armadillos shed M. leprae to their environment and even casual association with armadillos can expose a person to M. leprae. The raw organ flesh or blood of infected armadillos contains large numbers of leprosy bacilli and contact with armadillos from some low lying environments in Louisiana and Texas may present some increased risk for human infection. At right is a picture of the 9-banded Armadillo.

Early diagnosis and treatment of Hansen's disease may prevent the development of severe disabilities as well as prevent the spread of the disease to close contacts. This infection is treated with certain specific antibiotics, which generally takes from 12 months to two years and is very effective. Treatment renders even the most severe cases non-infectious within a few days of treatment and patients need not be isolated. The disease does not spread easily and is not spread through casual contact. A person with Hansen's disease can continue to work and lead an active life.

Links