New Concept of Progressive Indeterminate Leprosy

Leprosy remains a major global health problem, especially in the developing world. The number of new cases of leprosy identified worldwide has not changed over the last two decades. A hypopigmented patch of Indeterminate leprosy is the most frequently noticed sign of early leprosy. There is a high level of agreement among clinicians and histopathologists regarding diagnosis of determined leprosy but there is greater differences regarding diagnosis of Indeterminate leprosy among clinicians and histopathologists all over the world. The profile of leprosy patients presenting in an outpatient clinic has radically changed and more and more early Indeterminate lesions are encountered. The term Progressive Indeterminate leprosy is coined for Indeterminate leprosy progressing to cause various deformities and disabilities without becoming determinate. For this study such 50 cases are selected with 6 or more Indeterminate patches diagnosed by histopathology and having at least 2 or more deformities and/or disabilities and treated with modified MDT. The primary goal is early diagnosis of progressive Indeterminate leprosy to prevent deformities and disabilities caused by leprosy.