BANGKOK: Health ministers from 18-high burden leprosy countries in all World Health Organization (WHO) regions have vowed to ensure a leprosy-free world at a key summit here.
"We aim to reduce the burden of leprosy and ultimately move toward a leprosy free world," the ministers said in the Bangkok Declaration agreed in the International Leprosy Summit in Bangkok, Thailand, which will end here tomorrow.
They also urged governments and all interested parties to prioritize activities and allocate more resources for the purpose of creating a leprosy-free world in the coming years, a Bangkok Post report said Thursday.
The Bangkok Declaration recognizes that further work needs to be done and reaffirms the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners’ resolve to achieve a leprosy-free world.
Leprosy remains a health concern in the endemic pockets despite significant progress in fighting the disease.
The WHO has recorded that in 2012, there were 232,850 new cases of leprosy reported, up by 6,224 cases from 2011.
Ninety-four percent of the total cases occurred in 15 endemic countries, many of which are in Southeast Asia and Africa.
The number of leprosy-affected people who sought treatment only after developing visible deformities increased to 14,409 in 2012, up from 13,079 in 2011.
Leprosy is a chronic disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium leprae.
Skin lesions are the primary external sign. The bacterium multiplies very slowly and the incubation period ranges from a few months to as long as 20 years.
It is not a highly communicable disease. Scientists are still not sure how it is transmitted, but they say 95 percent of the population is naturally immune to it.
There is no vaccine to prevent this disease. Affected people are treated by MDT (Multi Drug Therapy) over a prolonged period.
This drug combination kills the bacteria and fully cures the patient within the first few doses.
Since 1995, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been providing free multi-drug therapy for patients worldwide, initially through multi-drug therapy for patients worldwide, initially through a drug fund from the Nippon Foundation and, since 2000, through donations provided by Novartis and the Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development.
The WHO has recorded that in 2012, there were 232,850 new cases of leprosy reported, up by 6,224 cases from 2011.
Ninety-four percent of the total cases occurred in 15 endemic countries, many of which are in Southeast Asia and Africa.
The number of leprosy-affected people who sought treatment only after developing visible deformities increased to 14,409 in 2012, up from 13,079 in 2011.
"We will achieve the global target of reducing the occurrence of new cases with visible deformity grade-2 disability to less than one case per million population by the year 2020," the declaration said.
The ministers also agreed to prevent the occurrence of leprosy-caused disability through early detection and limiting disabilities among already disabled persons, the Bangkok Post report said. (QNA)
