O'Brien Margaret A, Hyde Jordan, Hsu Sylvia
Dermatology, Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, USA.
Cureus. 2024 Dec 25;16(12):e76375. doi: 10.7759/cureus.76375. eCollection 2024 Dec.
Leprosy is an uncommon chronic mycobacterial infection in the United States caused by . There are two major forms of the infection, lepromatous leprosy and tuberculoid leprosy, with borderline forms of each. Leprosy is even more uncommon in the Northeastern United States and can present with various symptoms and skin findings, including erythematous or hypopigmented patches or plaques with accompanying hypoesthesia or anesthesia, anhidrosis, or alopecia. We present the case of a 29-year-old woman with a progressive rash with multiple morphologies accompanied by neuropathy and pain. Skin biopsy demonstrated acid-fast bacilli, and a diagnosis of lepromatous leprosy was confirmed. With leprosy cases on the rise, it is paramount that clinicians consider this diagnosis so that prompt treatment can be initiated. This case provides a clinical example of multiple morphologies of leprosy infection in a clinical setting where the prevalence of leprosy is very low.
在美国，麻风病是一种由……引起的罕见慢性分枝杆菌感染。该感染有两种主要形式，瘤型麻风病和结核样型麻风病，每种又有中间型。麻风病在美国东北部更为罕见，可表现出各种症状和皮肤表现，包括伴有感觉减退或麻木、无汗或脱发的红斑或色素减退斑或斑块。我们报告一例29岁女性病例，其皮疹呈进行性，有多种形态，伴有神经病变和疼痛。皮肤活检显示抗酸杆菌，确诊为瘤型麻风病。随着麻风病病例的增加，临床医生考虑这一诊断并及时开始治疗至关重要。该病例提供了一个在麻风病患病率极低的临床环境中麻风病感染多种形态的临床实例。
