Prevalence rates of leprosy have reduced considerably in many states where multidrug therapy is in operation. However, reduction in prevalence alone is not sufficient as the social consequences of the diseases on the life of the patient are often severe and persist even after its cure. The present paper, therefore, investigates social impact with special reference to gender differentials. Data obtained from structured questionnaires (n = 606) is analysed for this purpose. It was observed that the initial delay in identifying the skin changes as the symptoms of the disease were higher for females (29 months) than males (24 months). Even after identifying the symptoms, women were observed to depend exclusively on nonmedical treatment for a longer period (10 months) than males (6 months). Upon starting the medical treatment females were observed to be more compliant than males, but the benefits of regularity appeared to be outweighed by the initial delay in starting medical treatment. The social impact on daily life was more severe for females than males as revealed by the isolation from daily activities, such as, restrictions on participation in familial functions, restrictions on touching children. The paper highlights implications of gender bias on detection and treatment, and suggests modifications for control programmes.
BT - Leprosy review C1 - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8885612?dopt=Abstract CN - RAO1996 DA - 1996 Sep DO - 10.5935/0305-7518.19960019 IS - 3 J2 - Lepr Rev LA - eng N2 -Prevalence rates of leprosy have reduced considerably in many states where multidrug therapy is in operation. However, reduction in prevalence alone is not sufficient as the social consequences of the diseases on the life of the patient are often severe and persist even after its cure. The present paper, therefore, investigates social impact with special reference to gender differentials. Data obtained from structured questionnaires (n = 606) is analysed for this purpose. It was observed that the initial delay in identifying the skin changes as the symptoms of the disease were higher for females (29 months) than males (24 months). Even after identifying the symptoms, women were observed to depend exclusively on nonmedical treatment for a longer period (10 months) than males (6 months). Upon starting the medical treatment females were observed to be more compliant than males, but the benefits of regularity appeared to be outweighed by the initial delay in starting medical treatment. The social impact on daily life was more severe for females than males as revealed by the isolation from daily activities, such as, restrictions on participation in familial functions, restrictions on touching children. The paper highlights implications of gender bias on detection and treatment, and suggests modifications for control programmes.
PY - 1996 SP - 190 EP - 9 T2 - Leprosy review TI - Gender differentials in the social impact of leprosy. UR - http://leprev.ilsl.br/pdfs/1996/v67n3/pdf/v67n3a04.pdf VL - 67 SN - 0305-7518 ER -