Bacterial, Viral and Infectious Diseases

Nearly 14 years after leprosy was eliminated from India, many continue to be infected with the lepra bacilli. Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease that primarily affects the peripheral nerves, skin, upper respiratory tract, eyes and nasal mucosa. The disease is caused by Mycobacterium leprae. The leprosy elimination campaign sponsored by the World Health Organization has successfully reduced the prevalence rate of the disease to less than one case per 10,000 populations worldwide, but the number of new cases in endemic countries has increased so we undertake to this study to know the trend of leprosy in our tertiary care hospital. Method: This was a cross-sectional study carried out over a period of six months from August 2018 to January 2019 in Narayan Medical College and Hospital Jamuhar Sasaram. Samples were obtained from patients who attended the dermatology department of NMCH Jamuahr Sasaram with history suggestive of leprosy. The slit skin smear was obtained as per standard protocol and then sample were subjected to modified (5%) Ziehl- Neelsen Staining for direct microscopy and result were observed under oil immersion.