Leprosy
LeprosyLeprosy or Hansen's Disease, is a disease that affects primarily the skin and nerves. It was discovered in 1874 by a Norwegian physician Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen.The disease was thought to have started somewhere in India and then was past on to Africa and Europe. In the late 1800's leprosy was very common throughout Europe.
It became less and less through Europe and spread to areas of Africa that had bad nutrition and unhealthy living environments. Today the disease is not very common. Worldwide it is estimated that only five percent of the population is susceptible. There are not many cases of leprosy reported each year. Scientists are now able to grow the bacteria in test tubes. The normal form of leprosy seen in most cases is called dimorphous. This form is what a person first gets, but when the body can't fight it turns into lepromatous. This formattacks nerves, the skin, the mucous membranes, and the eyes.In most cases it is easy to detect the disease. At first many people will loose a...
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