One hundred twenty institutionalized cases of leprosy were tested for anxiety and depression on standard scales before and after psychiatric treatment. The latter seems to be effective in reducing both anxiety and depression after a course of treatment of three months. This appears to be a sound justification to advocate mental health care in institutions of leprosy in conjunction with physical care. Leprosy is a chronic and disabling disease entity. With the social stigma associated to the disease the psychiatric hazards of the disease are as bad as its physical manifestations. However, usually, only the latter attract attention. Ignorance about the disease and social values about the disease can at once land a person in depression on utterance of the diagnosis. Further, anxiety about the outcome of the disease in particular and future in general are known to exist in sufferers of leprosy.
BT - Leprosy in India C1 - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6632785?dopt=Abstract CN - Infolep Library - available DA - 1983 Apr IS - 2 J2 - Lepr India LA - eng N2 -One hundred twenty institutionalized cases of leprosy were tested for anxiety and depression on standard scales before and after psychiatric treatment. The latter seems to be effective in reducing both anxiety and depression after a course of treatment of three months. This appears to be a sound justification to advocate mental health care in institutions of leprosy in conjunction with physical care. Leprosy is a chronic and disabling disease entity. With the social stigma associated to the disease the psychiatric hazards of the disease are as bad as its physical manifestations. However, usually, only the latter attract attention. Ignorance about the disease and social values about the disease can at once land a person in depression on utterance of the diagnosis. Further, anxiety about the outcome of the disease in particular and future in general are known to exist in sufferers of leprosy.
PY - 1983 SP - 310 EP - 3 T2 - Leprosy in India TI - Leprosy--a case for mental health care. VL - 55 SN - 0024-1024 ER -