NEW DELHI: As many as 1,82,815 new leprosy cases were reported across more than 100 countries in 2023, with 95 per cent of these cases concentrated in 23 global priority countries, said the WHO on Saturday.
Alarmingly, over 5 per cent of the new cases reported with Grade 2 Disability (visible deformity), highlighting delays in detection, said the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the occasion of World Leprosy Day, which is celebrated annually on the last Sunday of January.
The WHO also said that 5.6 per cent of new cases were among children, with some countries reporting child rates exceeding 30 per cent, indicating ongoing transmission.
A neglected tropical disease, leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by a type of bacteria, Mycobacterium leprae. The disease predominantly affects the skin and peripheral nerves. Left untreated, the disease may cause progressive and permanent disabilities.
“Longstanding stigma around this disease stubbornly persists, and misinformation only adds to the challenge. The social isolation of affected persons – and their families – perpetuates discrimination and intensifies stigma,” Saima Wazed, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia Region, which includes India.
Leprosy is reported in all the six WHO regions; the majority of annual new case detections are from the South-East Asia Region.
According to WHO in 2023, Brazil, India and Indonesia reported more than 10,000 new cases, while 12 other countries (Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Philippines, Somalia, Sri Lanka and the United Republic of Tanzania) each reported 1000-10,000 new cases. Fifty-six countries reported 0 cases and 112 reported fewer than 1000 new cases, as per WHO data.
India aims to eliminate leprosy by 2027, three years ahead of the global target. As per government data, the prevalence rate of leprosy has come down from 0.69 per 10,000 population in 2014-15 to 0.45 in 2021-22. Further, annual new case detection rate per 100,000 population has come down from 9.73 in 2014-15 to 5.52 in 2021-22.
Dr Wazed said that while significant progress has been made in reducing the burden of leprosy since the introduction of multi-drug therapy (MDT) and the 1991 World Health Assembly resolution, challenges remain.