02259nas a2200421   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001000055653000900065653002200074653002300096653001000119653002200129653001100151653002000162653002000182653001100202653002400213653001200237653000900249653001600258653003800274653002600312653003100338653001700369653001600386100001200402700001100414700001000425700001000435245009900445856005100544300001100595490000700606050003200613520117800645022001401823       2009                            d  c2009 Dec10aAdult10aAged10aAged, 80 and over10aAttitude to Health10aChina10aDelayed Diagnosis10aFemale10aHealth Behavior10aHealth Services10aHumans10aInterviews as Topic10aleprosy10aMale10aMiddle Aged10aPatient Acceptance of Health Care10aSocioeconomic Factors10aSurveys and Questionnaires10aTime Factors10aYoung Adult1 aZhang F1 aChen S1 aSun Y1 aChu T00aHealthcare seeking behaviour and delay in diagnosis of leprosy in a low endemic area of China.  uhttps://leprosyreview.org/article/80/4/41-6423  a416-230 v80  aInfolep Library - available3 a<p>Delay in diagnosis of leprosy can increase the risk of nerve function impairments and promote the transmission of the infection in a community. In order to understand the factors associated with the delays in diagnosis of leprosy, a questionnaire-based interview was conducted to collect information on the delays among 88 newly diagnosed leprosy patients. The results showed that delay was common and associated with the high rate of disability in the study population. The total mean delay was 50.18 months (median 36 months). The mean patient delay was 24-4 months (median 9.5 months) and the mean health service delay was 257 months (median 12 months). Patients with leprosy reported a variety of symptoms/signs at an early stage of the disease, particularly numbness and tingling. Ignorance of the illness was reported to be the main reason for the patient's delay. Health seeking actions ranged from 1 to 50 with a mean of 7.2 after becoming aware of the first symptom/sign. The effectiveness of early diagnosis of leprosy through health promotion in the population needs to be validated and continuous training on leprosy among healthcare providers is needed.</p>  a0305-7518