Comparison of the reaction to Dharmendra antigen in the normal skin and in the lesion of leprosy patients.

In this study 0.1 ml of Dharmendra antigen was injected intradermally into the normal skin and lesions of 35 leprosy patients. The response was measured at 24 hrs., 48 hrs. and 21 days. It was found that the maximum response to Dharmendra antigen occurred at the end of 24 hrs. and started wanning by 48 hrs. In tuberculoid leprosy, there was significantly greater response in the lesion as compared with the nearby normal skin. It has been suggested that this could reflect an increased immunological activity at the site of the lesion. In the borderline tuberculoid cases with annular lesions, Dharmendra antigen was injected into the peripheral infiltrated area and into the apparently normal centre of the lesion, and a greater response was found at the centre. This might be the site of a previous lesion. The late reaction at the end of 21 days did not show much significant difference.