02443nas a2200169   4500000000100000008004100001100001800042700001600060700001700076700002000093700001900113245017300132856004900305300001200354490000700366520190000373       2021                            d1 aNirmaladevi P1 aArunkumar B1 aJudith Joy J1 aMaalik Babu ANM1 aKalyanakumar P00aClinicopathological Profile of Cases Attending Leprosy Clinic in a Tertiary Care Hospital of South Tamil Nadu and Its Correlation with Current Leprosy Trends under NLEP  uhttps://www.ijl.org.in/article-detail/93/368  a329-3400 v933 a<p>Leprosy was officially declared eliminated as a public health problem at national level from India since December, 2005; still, there are districts and blocks reporting high prevalence indicating ongoing transmission. The present study aimed at determining the current clinical profile of leprosy from a tertiary level hospital in south Tamil Nadu and its correlation with current leprosy trends under NLEP. A retrospective, proforma-based case analysis was carried out on patients diagnosed and registered in the leprosy clinic of a tertiary care teaching hospital at Tirunelveli (2012 to 2017). Data regarding demographic details, clinical features, investigations, treatment and complications were analysed and compared with other statistics under NLEP. A total of 221 patients were registered at this hospital over a 5 year period, with a male to female ratio of 2.5:1 among adults (n=207, 92.7%) and an equal sex ratio among children (n=14, 6.3%). Multibacillary leprosy was the most common clinical type (83.3%). Borderline tuberculoid leprosy was the most frequent type (34.3%) followed by lepromatous leprosy (25.7%), borderline lepromatous (21.7%), borderlineborderline and pure neuritic (6.3% each), histoid and tuberculoid (2.7% each) in descending order. Type 1 and Type 2 lepra reactions were seen in 15.4% and 10% of cases, respectively. WHO grade II deformities were diagnosed in 46.8% including PB (n=3) &amp; MB (n=65). Very high proportion of multi-bacillary cases, increasing child rates both at district level as well as our patients and also high Grade 2 deformity rates in tandem with district NLEP statistics indicate that transmission is continuing and some patients are reporting late. Thus there is urgent need for in-depth studies at the community level and appropriate remedial public health measures are required to achieve WHO millennium goals (2016-2020).</p>