01541nas a2200205   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001200055653003100067653001100098653001200109100001600121700001500137700001600152245009200168300001000260490000700270520104400277022001401321       1983                            d  c1983 Sep10aDapsone10aDrug Resistance, Microbial10aHumans10aleprosy1 aAlmeida J G1 aChacko C J1 aChristian M00aThe significance of dapsone (DDS)-resistant Mycobacterium leprae in untreated patients.  a374-70 v513 a<p>In a stable rural population of South India, 18 consecutive untreated persons newly discovered to have leprosy with a Bacterial Index (BI) greater than or equal to 2+ were tested for Mycobacterium leprae resistant to dapsone (DDS) by the mouse foot pad test. Of 12 successful tests, five detected resistant M. leprae. Known contact with a treated patient in the ten years preceding the diagnosis of leprosy was not found to increase the risk of DDS-resistant M. leprae occurring in an untreated, newly diagnosed patient. This data is consistent with the bulk of evidence in the field of bacteriology, which makes it seem unlikely that treated patients are the only source, or even the major source, of resistant M. leprae in untreated patients. Bacterial mutants resistant to a drug have been shown to precede initial use of the drug. Tests for drug-resistant bacteria in untreated patients before a drug is widely used in a community are likely to be important for subsequent evaluation of resistance to the drug in that community.</p>  a0148-916X