Experience with Administering Single Dose Rifampicin as Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (SDR-PEP) for Leprosy Through Blanket Approach in Uttar Pradesh, India

Globally, the blanket approach of administering single dose rifampicin as post exposure prophylaxis (SDR-PEP) for leprosy is to be studied thoroughly. This is the first report from India on the blanket approach carried out in a village of Uttar Pradesh. A self-driven district leprosy officer witnessing high number of new leprosy cases from a village of Varanasi in 2017, screened the entire population of the village (33 houses, population 172), found 12 new cases, treated them with MDT, and administered SDR-PEP to the entire eligible population. Since then, this population has been closely followed. The last follow-up was done in 2023. No new case of leprosy was found during these six years of follow-up. Though anecdotal in nature, the report signifies the need to conduct systemic studies on the blanket approach for SDR-PEP, documenting its effectiveness in locations of varied endemicity and mobility.