Objective: describe characteristics of leprosy cases in Kuwait during a five-year-period
Methods: a total of 91 new leprosy cases were referred to Infectious diseases hospital in Kuwait from 2007 - 2011 were studied.
Results: of the 91 new leprosy case s, 50 (54.95%) were males and 41 (45.05%) females. The age of the patients ranged between 8 to 84 years with an overall mean of 33.67+10.99 years. Indians constituted just more than half of cases (51.65%), while Kuwaiti patients represented only 3.03% of the cases. We found an association between the occurrence of leprosy reaction and the type of leprosy , Type I & II reaction were more common in multibacillary cases. 90 (98.90%) cases sought medical advice because of their skin lesions with or without neuropathy. The time to diagnosis ranged between 2 weeks to 5 years with an overall mean of 0.63+0.68 years.
conclusion: Although leprosy is non endemic in Kuwait and most cases are imported, healthcare workers should be aware of the magnitude of the disease and its clinical presentation to achieve an early diagnosis and treatment so prevent leprosy spread in Kuwait.
Objective: describe characteristics of leprosy cases in Kuwait during a five-year-period
Methods: a total of 91 new leprosy cases were referred to Infectious diseases hospital in Kuwait from 2007 - 2011 were studied.
Results: of the 91 new leprosy case s, 50 (54.95%) were males and 41 (45.05%) females. The age of the patients ranged between 8 to 84 years with an overall mean of 33.67+10.99 years. Indians constituted just more than half of cases (51.65%), while Kuwaiti patients represented only 3.03% of the cases. We found an association between the occurrence of leprosy reaction and the type of leprosy , Type I & II reaction were more common in multibacillary cases. 90 (98.90%) cases sought medical advice because of their skin lesions with or without neuropathy. The time to diagnosis ranged between 2 weeks to 5 years with an overall mean of 0.63+0.68 years.
conclusion: Although leprosy is non endemic in Kuwait and most cases are imported, healthcare workers should be aware of the magnitude of the disease and its clinical presentation to achieve an early diagnosis and treatment so prevent leprosy spread in Kuwait.