Incidence rates of leprosy in Karonga District, northern Malawi, are analyzed by duration of schooling and housing conditions, controlling for age, sex, BCG scar and geographical zone of the household. There is a strong inverse relationship between the number of completed years of schooling and leprosy risk. Good housing conditions are also associated with a decreased risk of developing leprosy in this population. The effect of housing is seen most strongly in young people. It is hypothesized that schooling changes behavior and housing determines environment in ways which are relevant for the transmission of Mycobacterium leprae or for the appropriate priming of the immune system.
BT - International journal of leprosy and other mycobacterial diseases : official organ of the International Leprosy Association C1 - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7963906?dopt=Abstract DA - 1994 Sep IS - 3 J2 - Int. J. Lepr. Other Mycobact. Dis. LA - eng N2 -Incidence rates of leprosy in Karonga District, northern Malawi, are analyzed by duration of schooling and housing conditions, controlling for age, sex, BCG scar and geographical zone of the household. There is a strong inverse relationship between the number of completed years of schooling and leprosy risk. Good housing conditions are also associated with a decreased risk of developing leprosy in this population. The effect of housing is seen most strongly in young people. It is hypothesized that schooling changes behavior and housing determines environment in ways which are relevant for the transmission of Mycobacterium leprae or for the appropriate priming of the immune system.
PY - 1994 SP - 345 EP - 52 T2 - International journal of leprosy and other mycobacterial diseases : official organ of the International Leprosy Association TI - Extended schooling and good housing conditions are associated with reduced risk of leprosy in rural Malawi. UR - http://ila.ilsl.br/pdfs/v62n3a01.pdf VL - 62 SN - 0148-916X ER -