Imported leprosy in Italy.
J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol
; 26(8): 999-1006, 2012 Aug.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-21831112
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Leprosy is far from being eliminated with more than 200,000 new cases detected (NCD)/year.OBJECTIVE:
Retrospective analysis between 2003 and 2009 to compare the New Case Detected Rate (NCDR) observed in Italy in the immigrant population with the NCDR of the same population in their country of origin to verify if the cases observed are those expected or not.METHODS:
Leprosy statistics were retrieved from the Italian leprosy register and from official WHO data.RESULTS:
The NCD in Italy were lower than expected, from 2003 when the expected number of NCD was 40.5 between the legally resident immigrants, but only one case was diagnosed (98% of lower from the expected), to 2009 when four NCD were diagnosed and 41 were expected (90% lower from expected).CONCLUSIONS:
This study points out a discrepancy between the observed and the expected cases of leprosy in Italy. Specifically, the number of NCD was less than expected for each studied year. Of course our data do not represent a validation, but only an indication of the leprosy diagnosis in Italy. Difficulty in accessing the health systems, fear of segregation, ignorance and illegal immigrant status with consequent fear of police arrest are possible explaining factors. The critical issue anyhow is the medical expertise. The role of the dermatologist is fundamental. For these reasons, there is still a need for wide spread leprosy teaching programmes. Although with few limitations, this study represents a first approach to validate the accuracy in leprosy diagnosis in Italy.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Hanseníase
Limite:
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol
Assunto da revista:
DERMATOLOGIA
/
DOENCAS SEXUALMENTE TRANSMISSIVEIS
Ano de publicação:
2012
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Áustria