Leprosy not a public health threat – DOH

MANILA, Philippines - The government has assured the public that leprosy is no longer a health threat after 800 new cases were monitored this year.

Francesca Gajete, Department of Health manager for the National Leprosy Control Program, said leprosy is now curable so patients need not be confined in a sanitarium to undergo treatment.

“The medicine is free and after just a day of treatment, you are no longer infectious... The most pressing problem is how to decrease the burden of the disease, particularly stigma and discrimination,” she said.

Some 2,012 leprosy cases were recorded in 2012 in Metro Manila, Cebu, Ilocos Sur, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu, she added.

Leprosy symptoms like pale or reddish skin patches, usually appearing 10 to 15 years after infection, Gajete said.

Former health secretary Alberto Romualdez said despite the availability of free medicine, leprosy is more difficult to cure.

“They no longer need to be confined,” he said.

“They are now in their communities but do not want to come out. That’s a complication and we should focus on that.”

When the National Leprosy Control Program was established in 1986, 38,570 leprosy patients were registered in the country, an   annual prevalence rate of 7.2 per 10,000 Filipinos.

By the end of 1998, the Philippines was able to eliminate leprosy as a public health problem after achieving the elimination level of one case per 10,000. 

Now pockets of cases are being seen in some municipalities, particularly in the Ilocos region, Central Visayas, and SOCCSKSARGEN.