01673nas a2200265   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653002900055653001600084653001100100653002600111653001100137653001200148653000900160653002300169653002500192653002300217653001000240100001200250245005400262300001000316490000800326520105900334022001401393       2009                            d  c2009 Nov10aAcademies and institutes10aDermatology10aFemale10aHistory, 20th Century10aHumans10aleprosy10aMale10aModels, Biological10aPeriodicals as Topic10aSocieties, Medical10aSpain1 aAguas T00a[Infectious nature of leprosy, by Juan de Azúa].  a756-80 v1003 a<p>In this article by Juan de Azua, published in the second issue of Actas Dermosifiliográficas in 1909, the author reports his experience in 139 patients, most of them from Hospital San Juan de Dios, Madrid,Spain, and states he is sure that leprosy is a contagious disease. He discusses the factors related to contagion,which occurs in a closed and family environment, emphasizing socioeconomic factors such as hygiene and promiscuity. He considers direct contact to be important, though also recognizing indirect contact through drinks and food; he totally rejects a hereditary mechanism. Epidemiologically, he draws attention to the higher prevalence of the disease in Andalusia, though not forgetting "La Lepra de Ultramar [leprosy from distant lands]"-32 cases in Spaniards in Cuba and the Philippines. He believes isolation in hospitals or special sanatoriums, such as San Juan de Dios or San Lázaro in Santiago, Granada, and Seville, to be the best prophylaxis, and he considers it would be appropriate to create "Hospitals for poor lepers".</p>  a0001-7310