OSSSC Nursing Disease Guide

Communicable · High priority

Leprosy

Core disease facts with the linked government programme, prevention and treatment or cure reality.

TypeBacterial disease — caused by Mycobacterium leprae.

Image-based identification

Multiple pale skin lesions in borderline tuberculoid leprosy
What to identifyA pale or reddish patch becomes a cardinal leprosy sign when definite sensory loss is present; appearance alone is not diagnostic.Image credit: CDC / Dr Andre J. Lebrun; J. Justin Older, MD — public domain

Government programmes, schemes and services

  • Programme: National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP): Provides free early diagnosis, multidrug therapy, contact screening, disability prevention, rehabilitation and anti-stigma work, aiming to interrupt transmission at district level.
  • Service: Nikusth 2.0: The digital platform used for real-time leprosy case reporting, tracking and programme monitoring.
  • Campaign: Sparsh Leprosy Awareness Campaign: Promotes early self-reporting and works to remove myths, stigma and discrimination associated with leprosy.

Prevention

  • Prevent: Early case/contact detection, prompt treatment to stop transmission, disability prevention, stigma reduction

Treatment and cure reality

  • Treat: Curable with complete multidrug therapy; existing nerve damage/disability may need long-term care.

Must remember

  • Main tissues: Skin and peripheral nerves; eyes and upper-respiratory mucosa may also be involved.
  • Transmission: Prolonged, close exposure to droplets from an untreated case; it is not highly contagious through brief casual contact.
  • Cardinal signs: Definite loss of sensation in a pale/reddish skin patch; thickened peripheral nerve with sensory/motor loss; or acid-fast bacilli on slit-skin smear.
  • Paucibacillary: Usually 1–5 skin lesions with no bacilli detected.
  • Multibacillary: More than 5 lesions, nerve involvement, or bacilli detected.
  • Treatment: Multidrug therapy using rifampicin, dapsone, and clofazimine under programme protocols; do not call dapsone monotherapy the current treatment.
  • Reaction is not treatment failure: Acute inflammatory lepra reactions can occur before, during, or after multidrug therapy and require prompt nerve-function assessment.
  • Disability prevention: Early diagnosis, self-care, ulcer care, protective footwear, physiotherapy, and reconstructive services.
  • National status: India achieved elimination as a public-health problem nationally in 2005, defined as prevalence below 1 per 10,000—not eradication.
  • Current target: Interruption of transmission at district level by 2027 under the National Strategic Plan 2023–2027.
  • Recent policy: Revised treatment was implemented in 2025, and leprosy was declared a notifiable disease.
  • Digital system: Nikusth 2.0 supports case-based reporting and surveillance.