Department of Anatomy, Subharti Medical College, Delhi-Haridwar By Pass Road, Meerut UP, India.
Int J Infect Dis. 2010 Sep;14 Suppl 3:e70-2. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2009.11.018. Epub 2010 Mar 6.
Leprosy is a chronic inflammatory disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae, which affects not only the peripheral nerves and skin, but also various internal viscera through hematogenous spread, especially in lepromatous cases. Histology in its own way plays a vital role, not only in classifying the established lesion, but also in confirming the clinical diagnosis. During the latent period of subclinical involvement, the apparently normal looking skin might also be undergoing some pathological changes.
We investigated skin biopsy material taken from 60 patients with clinically diagnosed leprosy at Subharti Hospital, Subharti Medical College, Meerut, India. Hematoxylin and eosin staining and Harada's modified allochrome method for acid-fast bacilli were applied for histological investigations.
The pattern of leprosy among the patients was indeterminate in 25 cases (41.7%), tuberculoid in 14 (23.3%), borderline tuberculoid in six (10%), borderline leprosy in four (6.7%), borderline lepromatous in four (6.7%), and lepromatous leprosy in seven (11.7%). Changes were seen in the arrector pili muscle of normal appearing skin in all types of leprosy, but involvement was greater at the lepromatous end of the spectrum compared to the tuberculoid end.
Results of this study revealed definitive histological changes in the arrector pili muscle in normal appearing skin. The presence of AFB is significant as far as dissemination and transmission of the disease is concerned.
麻风病是由麻风分枝杆菌引起的慢性炎症性疾病，不仅会影响外周神经和皮肤，还会通过血行播散影响各种内脏器官，尤其是瘤型病例。组织学自有其作用，不仅可以对已确立的病变进行分类，还可以确认临床诊断。在亚临床受累的潜伏期内，外观正常的皮肤也可能发生一些病理变化。
我们调查了印度密拉特萨巴提医学院苏巴提医院的 60 名临床诊断为麻风病的患者的皮肤活检材料。进行了苏木精和曙红染色以及 Harada 改良异染法抗酸杆菌染色的组织学研究。
25 例（41.7%）患者的麻风病模式为未定类，14 例（23.3%）为结核样型，6 例（10%）为界限类结核样型，4 例（6.7%）为界限类偏瘤型，4 例（6.7%）为界限类偏麻风型，7 例（11.7%）为瘤型麻风。所有类型的麻风病中，正常外观皮肤的竖毛肌都有变化，但在瘤型一端比结核样型一端的受累程度更大。
本研究结果显示正常外观皮肤的竖毛肌有明确的组织学变化。抗酸杆菌的存在对于疾病的传播和传播至关重要。
