Arunraghav Potharaju, Herakal Kallappa
Department of Dermatology, Deccan Medical College, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Department of Dermatology, Navodaya Medical College, Raichur, Karnataka, India.
Indian Dermatol Online J. 2021 Mar 2;12(2):294-297. doi: 10.4103/idoj.IDOJ_177_18. eCollection 2021 Mar-Apr.
Leprosy occurs in all age groups, with adults constituting the majority. However, leprosy in children always drew the attention of epidemiologists as a guide to transmission of leprosy. With increasing life expectancy and decreasing prevalence of leprosy, there is going to be a significant rise of leprosy among elderly in India. In elderly leprosy patients, clinical signs are often quiet, which makes it a hidden source of infection. The detection of leprosy in elderly is of epidemiological importance, hence it is critical that due attention be given to leprosy in elderly as a possible contributor to hidden leprosy in India.
To analyze leprosy in elderly and in children from the records of new patients seen over the past 3-year period.
Analysis of details of "leprosy in elderly" and "leprosy in children'" from the records of new leprosy patients seen at a dermatology OPD of a teaching hospital over a period of 3 years.
Out of 157 patients, 34 (21.6%) were above 45 years, while 18 (11.4%) were below 15 years, the difference being statistically significant ( > 0.05). Bacteriological Index (BI) values in elderly were higher compared to children. In addition, elderly had a higher percentage of multibacillary (MB) leprosy compared to children both clinically (35% vs 22%) and histopathologically (38% vs 22%).
Leprosy in elderly is an important entity, and there is a need to study it as a distinct group. It will provide information on hidden leprosy load and apprise us on sources of infection in the community.
麻风病可见于所有年龄组，其中成年人占大多数。然而，儿童麻风病一直吸引着流行病学家的关注，将其作为麻风病传播的一个指标。随着预期寿命的增加和麻风病患病率的下降，印度老年人中的麻风病病例预计将显著增加。在老年麻风病患者中，临床症状往往不明显，这使其成为一个潜在的传染源。老年麻风病的检测具有重要的流行病学意义，因此，必须高度重视印度老年人群中的麻风病，因为它可能是隐匿性麻风病的一个来源。
通过分析过去3年新确诊患者的记录，研究老年和儿童麻风病的情况。
分析一家教学医院皮肤科门诊3年来新确诊麻风病患者记录中的“老年麻风病”和“儿童麻风病”的详细信息。
157例患者中，34例（21.6%）年龄在45岁以上，18例（11.4%）年龄在15岁以下，差异具有统计学意义（P>0.05）。老年患者的细菌学指数（BI）值高于儿童。此外，无论是临床诊断（35%对22%）还是组织病理学诊断（38%对22%），老年多菌型（MB）麻风病患者的比例均高于儿童。
老年麻风病是一个重要的研究对象，有必要将其作为一个独立的群体进行研究。这将为隐匿性麻风病负担提供信息，并使我们了解社区中的传染源。
