Dropouts during treatment for leprosy (a study in the ELEP leprosy control project, Dharmapuri district, Tamilnadu during 1975-77).

Certain Social and Related Factors responsible for 231 dropout leprosy patients from treatment are discussed. Dropout rate was lowest among lepromatous patients (1.2% Vs 10.9% among nonlepromatous patients); patients with stigma/deformity were significantly less (P less than .001); among dropouts; proportion of wage-earners was high in them (p less than .001); student dropouts were few (Z-2.78, P less than .05, X2 - 10.32, d.f.-1, P less than .005); there was little association between socioeconomic status and dropout rate (P greater than .5); dropouts amongst patients who self-registered for treatment were much less than in those who were enlisted for treatment during survey (P less than .05); 38% had dropped out within the first six months of registration for treatment; lepromatous patients attended clinics for more than 25 months before becoming dropouts; fear of loss of wages, belief that it was not leprosy, social stigma attached to the disease, disinterest for treatment when lesions were small and few, dissatisfaction with treatment, and belief that patches self-healed were the main causes for discontinuance of treatment; all those who dropped out due to shyness were women of 15-44 age-group.