BACKGROUND: Hansen\'s disease, or leprosy, has a long-standing presence in human history, and our study uniquely delves into the experiences of individuals who are among the last survivors of this condition in Greece. During the early 1930s, patients with Hansen\'s disease from Spinalonga, an isolated location in Crete, were moved to a medical facility in Athens. This event represents a significant historical change in the management and treatment of the disease. Following Spinalonga\'s closure, a Sanatorium emerged, evolving into Greece\'s sole Hansen\'s disease center and the present-day refuge for patients, underscoring the enduring stigma and abandonment associated with the disease.
METHODS: Our study, conducted through six interviews with unstructured schedules, provides a unique opportunity for these individuals to share personal insights, offering a profound understanding of their interpretations and experiences.
RESULTS: Through interpretative phenomenological analysis, we unearthed four superordinate themes: the pivotal nature of the diagnosis, the visible impact of the disease on the body, the stigma associated with leprosy and its effects on individuals, and the significance of \'home\' as a place of solace and acceptance.
CONCLUSIONS: These themes collectively depict the deep emotional trauma experienced by the participants, shedding light on the enduring impact of historical stressors, confinement practices, and the challenges of living with a devalued identity, shaping their profound sense of self.

Hansen\'s disease (leprosy) is a rare infectious disease with less than 300 recorded cases in the United States every year. In this report, we present an 80-year-old White male with a three-year history of slowly progressive, pink, well-demarcated, and annular patches, plaques, and papules that started on his thighs and spread to his abdomen, chest, back, and upper extremities. After sequence identification on biopsies confirmed the diagnosis of leprosy, the patient was treated with an alternative regimen of monthly moxifloxacin, rifabutin, and minocycline. After a month of treatment, the patient reported a reduction in his rash. This report highlights a case of multibacillary leprosy in the southeastern United States. It is a very interesting study as the selection of this patient\'s treatment was complex, and he ultimately received an alternative therapeutic regimen. This case also highlights the rising incidence of leprosy in this region of the United States and stresses the importance of monitoring for warning signs indicative of this diagnosis to facilitate early treatment and attenuation of this disease.

UNASSIGNED: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection was firstly identified in China and has been declared a global pandemic. Several serious extrapulmonary manifestations due to SARS-CoV-2 infection have also been reported and associated with hypercoagulability thrombotic vasculopathy. In addition, cases of Mycobacterium-leprae infection have also been known associated with blood coagulation abnormality.
UNASSIGNED: Here, we report a 56-year-old male with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) with concomitant leprosy infection with manifestation of glans penile necrosis, presented to the emergency department with acute penile pain. This case is unique because no occlusion blood flow to the penile was observed in the radiographic imaging. We described the potential pathophysiology in this case through a literature review.
UNASSIGNED: The patient received treatment according to the COVID-19 protocol and was given low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) therapy for 4 days. During the follow up, the clinical and functional condition of the penis showed significant improvement.
UNASSIGNED: Microthrombus involvement, platelet abnormalities and impaired hemostasis due to SARS-CoV-2 and leprosy co-infection are the hypothesis in this case report.

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(1) Background: The global burden of leprosy is not shared equally; with the majority of cases being diagnosed in Brazil, India, and Indonesia. Understanding the methods of active case detection (ACD) used in high and low endemic regions is vital for the development of future screening programs. (2) Methods: A systematic search of three databases, PubMed, Embase and Web of Science, was conducted for English language papers, published since the year 2000, which discussed the use of active case detection methods for leprosy screening. The paper utilised the Integrated Screening Action Model (I-SAM) as a tool for the analysis of these methods. (3) Results: 23 papers were identified from 11 different countries. The papers identified 6 different methods of active case detection: Household contact/social contact identification; door-to-door case detection; screening questionnaire distribution; rapid village surveys; school-based screening; and prison-based screening. 15 were located in high endemic regions and 8 of these were located in low endemic regions. (4) Conclusions: For selecting the appropriate methods of active case finding, the leprosy endemicity must be taken into consideration. The findings contribute to policy decision making allowing for more successful future leprosy case detection programs to be designed, ultimately reducing the global burden of the disease, and achieving the WHO\'s aim of zero leprosy.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze trends in epidemiological risk of leprosy in Goiás state, Brazil, and its health macro-regions, between 2010 and 2021.
METHODS: This is a time series analysis of the composite leprosy epidemiological risk index in Goiás. We used cases held on the Notifiable Health Conditions Information System for calculating indicators separately and risk, classified as high, medium, low and very low. Trends were analyzed using Prais-Winsten linear regression and risk maps were produced.
RESULTS: Goiás showed high leprosy endemicity (24.8 cases/100,000 inhabitants) and medium epidemiological risk between 2019 and 2021 (0.58). A stationary trend was found (annual percentage change, 0.50; 95% confidence interval, -3.04; 4.16) for risk of leprosy in Goiás as a whole and in its Central-West and Central-Southeast macro-regions.
CONCLUSIONS: There is need for actions to reduce the epidemiological risk of leprosy, especially where its trend is stationary, this includes early screening for new cases and health education.
RESULTS: Leprosy persists in Goiás state, Brazil, in an endemic form, with heterogeneous distribution. There has been a reduction in the number of municipalities with high epidemiological risk of leprosy, but challenges include active transmission and late diagnosis.
UNASSIGNED: Long-term strategies for prevention, early detection, treatment and monitoring of people with leprosy and their contacts are needed.
CONCLUSIONS: It is crucial to strengthen health policies targeting leprosy in Goiás state, prioritizing continuing education and training programs for health professionals working in the entire territory.

Leprosy, also known as Hansen disease, is an airborne spread disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) which commonly presents with skin lesions, peripheral neuropathy, and ocular involvement. This report describes a patient who presented with epiphora secondary to chronic nasolacrimal duct obstruction four years after completing antimicrobial treatment for tuberculoid leprosy. At the time of endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR), the lacrimal sac demonstrated chronic dacryocystitis with granulomatous inflammation and a Fite positive staining bacterial rod-like structure. Pathological examination of the surgical specimen demonstrated numerous non-necrotizing granulomas in a perivascular and neural distribution, compatible with sequelae of previously treated M. leprae infection. The patient has remained symptom free six months after surgery.

Leprosy is still found mainly in lower-middle-income countries. Breaking the chain of leprosy transmission requires various ways, especially by increasing knowledge of leprosy prevention through health education. Although several studies have mentioned the effectiveness of health education, there is still uncertainty about the best method to use. Therefore, the review question should be answered: what forms of health education have been developed about Leprosy in the community? This review study complies with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) version 2020. The search for relevant literature involved PubMed, ScienceDirect, ERIC, Cochrane, and ProQuest databases for the studies published in the 2000 to 2023 period with the inclusion criteria such as increasing knowledge, changing attitudes and behavior, and increasing positive stigma. The quality of the study was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program, and the Risk of Bias using the Cochrane RoB tool. Overall search on databases resulted in a total of 184,681 articles. Only six studies were eligible to be included in this review. Various educational methods were used in the eligible studies, including MH Mobile, the myth or truth on Leprosy game, posters, leaflets, community meetings, tele-education the web, discussion lists, chats, activity diaries, iconographic 3D videos, classes on video streaming, video conference, case simulation, lecture, and the contact intervention (education, testimonies (direct contact), videos, and comics). All of the methods used had the potential to improve knowledge, attitude, and practice and reduce negative stigma regarding Leprosy. There is no method of health education superior to another on Leprosy prevention.

BACKGROUND: Kerala has a history of achievements in health through acting on the distal social determinants, but certain communities like tribals were pushed back from the stream of social development and health achievements. Subsequently, the lifestyle and the poor living conditions of tribes make them more prone to several diseases including skin diseases. However, neither the burden nor the situation of the same in the tribal population in several parts including Kerala is seldom assessed.
METHODS: The lack of awareness about the symptoms, complications, and management options as a part of the social backwardness has led to the concentration of certain diseases like Leprosy among the tribal community. In addition, the tribal population is under the threat of infectious diseases of public health significance like Leishmaniasis (CL). The tribal population owing to ignorance neglects the skin lesions or uses their local remedies. Tribes might have been using many local remedies for their issues, but the emerging skin diseases may not be amenable to local remedies and often impose significant public health concerns. Developing and maintaining an effectively functioning health system in these difficult-to-reach terrains is also a challenge. The pattern of skin diseases among tribals residing in environmentally sensitive localities is an indicator for the need for more social, economic and geospatial inclusion. Skin lesions of the tribal population should be kept under active surveillance activities through the integrated health information platform (IHIP) and it should follow a vigilant public health response if there are clusterings. A dedicated evidence-based system should be developed to diagnose and treat skin diseases of tribal people residing away from the availability of specialist care using local resources and community-level workers.
CONCLUSIONS: The rampant skin diseases among tribals are the product of their unacceptable socio-economic status and living conditions. It could only improve through interventions focusing on social determinants of health. Improvements in the living conditions of tribals are sustainable long-term solutions, but such solutions should be coupled with medium-term and short-term strategies.

Leprosy is an infectious disease that remains a public health concern. It is caused by acid-fast Bacillus leprae, which primarily affects the skin and peripheral nerves, potentially leading to long-term disability and stigma. However, current and previous efforts have focused on developing better diagnostic and therapeutic interventions for leprosy, and its prevention needs to be addressed. In this review, we organize the currently published papers and provide updates on the global epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of leprosy. Several online databases, including MEDLINE (National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD), PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, were searched to collect relevant published papers. As a public health issue, the World Health Organization set the goal of leprosy elimination with a prevalence of <1 case per 10,000 people, which was achieved in 2000 and in most countries by 2010, mainly owing to the treatment of leprosy using drugs starting in 1980 and no-cost access for patients since 1995. Although diagnostic and therapeutic techniques have improved, the new occurrence of leprosy remains a critical global disease burden. With continuous technological improvements in diagnosing and treating leprosy, obtaining more relevant healthcare knowledge and preventing leprosy disability are crucial.