01871nas a2200301   4500000000100000008004100001260003600042653002100078653001200099653002400111653002200135653001400157100001700171700001700188700001700205700001500222700001700237700001600254700002000270700001800290700001300308245010700321856010200428300001200530490000700542520099500549022002501544       2023                            d  bSri Lanka Journals Online (JOL)10aGeneral Medicine10aLeprosy10aHigh-risk community10aOut-reach clinics10aSri Lanka1 aKalubowila K1 aGajanayaka C1 aHapudeniya C1 aKahawita I1 aJayarathna L1 aVithanage S1 aThilakarathna M1 aGunathilaka J1 aAnujan S00aUsefulness of outreach clinics on active case detection of leprosy in a high endemic area in Sri Lanka  uhttps://storage.googleapis.com/jnl-sljo-j-jccpsl-files/journals/1/articles/8584/64df235038648.pdf  a124-1270 v293 a<p>Though Sri Lanka reports low endemicity and a lesser number of cases detected annually, leprosy patients below 14 years of age are rising. Therefore, active case finding is essential. A skin clinic was conducted in the District Hospital (DH), Lunawa of Colombo District where higher numbers of cases had been reported in the past. The people were alerted on the clinic through public health staff to identify new cases. Out of the 54 persons who attended the clinic, one was clinically diagnosed as having multibacillary leprosy and another subsequently detected among the five suspected patients who were referred for skin biopsy, giving a yield of active case finding of 0.37 per 10 000 persons screened (95% CI: 0.45, 1.26). This high yield of the disease indicates that active case finding is a possible strategy for high endemic areas, which could be enhanced with a combination of outreach programs like household surveys or awareness on leprosy at institutions like schools.</p>
  a2579-1451, 1391-3174