Five year leprosy eradication programme takes off 2000 new patients detected annually

By Don Asoka Wijewardena

Additional Secretary to the Health Ministry Dr. Palitha Maheepala yesterday announced that the Health Ministry would implement a five year plan to control leprosy in Sri Lanka from this year. Around 2000 new leprosy patients were identified annually. The affected patients had developed different physical deformities. The main reason for developing deformities was that the leprosy affected people were not getting effective treatment for about six months.

According to the available data, about ten per cent of leprosy patients had developed physical deformities. About nine per cent of all leprosy patients, were children under 15 years of age he said at a media conference on World Leprosy Day which falls on January 29 held at Family Health Bureau yesterday.

Dr. Maheepala said that people were not aware of the consequences of leprosy. They were reluctant to get timely medical attention. Because of indifferent attitudes of people, they would become chronic leprosy patients. Medical data had shown that 30 per cent of all leprosy patients were not completing the full course of medicine. Then they would lose drug resistance and would be liable to various physical deformaties.

Around 56 per cent of all reported leprosy patients were not seeking medical attention within 6 months period. Leprosy was a certain kind of bacteria. There were two types of leprosy. Posybacillary was not an infectious disease, but multibacillary was an infectious disease. The basic symptoms of leprosy included darker skin with scars on a person’s body. In addition leprosy patients would develop roughness on the skin and nerves, continuous headache. Some people were under the impression that leprosy patients lose fingers, but losing fingers was not a symptom of leprosy.

Dr. Maheepala added that the Health Ministry had formulated a plan to eradicate leprosy by 2016. The plan would be in operation from this year. Under the programme, diagnosing leprosy patients and conducting awareness programmes would be implemented by the Health Ministry.

http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=43817