Sri Lanka observes spike in Leprosy cases; 161 patients recorded from Colombo in 2023

by Zulfick Farzan 07-09-2023 | 9:27 AM

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lankan health officials said that a significant increase in leprosy cases was observed in 2023.

Officials said that a total of 864 patients were detected during the first seven months of the year, and 161 of these patients were from Colombo.

The Anti Leprosy Campaign at Sri Lanka's Health Ministry said that 47 leprosy patients were recorded from the Egodawela MOH zone alone.

Dr. Prasad Ranaweera from the Anti Leprosy Campaign said an awareness campaign will commence in the Western Province next week.

Key facts on Leprosy:

* 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.

* The bacteria are transmitted via droplets from the nose and mouth during close and frequent contact with untreated cases.

* Leprosy is curable with multidrug therapy (MDT).

* Leprosy is reported from all the six WHO Regions; the majority of annual new case detections are from South-East Asia.

Although Sri Lanka eliminated leprosy in 1995, after having achieved the elimination target of less than one case of leprosy per 10,000 of the population, recent statistics point to a rising trend in leprosy incidence, said the World Health Organization (WHO) in January 2023.

Sri Lanka has been recognized by WHO as one of 23 “global priority countries” for leprosy, emphasizing the need for targeted efforts to sustain elimination status and a final push towards ending leprosy in the country.