Geriatric Overview

Care for the elderly is something most countries seem to have a problem with. An aged population isn?t given as much attention as is a younger more vibrant aged group to get things done. Medically though, the elderly and other members of the older age group require a lot more attention than the youth.

Geriatrics specialists are trained for this very virtue. Derived from the Greek words for ?old? and ?care?, geriatric specialists are doctors specially trained in the diagnosis, treatment and care of the elderly. Owing to their age, members of the older age group are more susceptible to many ailments and disorders because of age. As the body gets weaker and slower systemically by age, the need for health care for the nation?s aged is at a high. Geriatric specialists are aware of all the changes and disorders that can affect the elderly and can assist and contribute with timely treatments for the better health of the patients.  

Leprosy is an ancient disease. It is caused by Mycobacterium Leprae.

It is unfortunate, that this bacteria has not been able to be cultivated, either in smears or tissue cultures.Even though the origin of this disease remains ancient, the techniques used in treatment are well up to date.

We now have various drugs to treat leprosy, recommended by the WHO Expert Committee Group.Dapsone has been one of the most useful drug.It is the drug of choice for treating almost all forms of leprosy. Mechanism Of Action Of Dapsone is unique, but similar to a typical Anti-Biotic (Competitive Antagonism).It prevents DNA Replication.Use of Dapsone, along with other drugs, has shown to decrease bacterial count to a great extent.

Even though the techniques used for treatment at par, the efficiency of the treatment is largely based on the mental state of the patient.Leprosy has been a disease held in a superstitious dread.In older times, people used to think that patients who have contracted leprosy are “Bad People”, and that, they are being punished by God for their sinful deeds, and that, they deserved this.

Even though this thought has now eradicated from the society, the eradication is not 100%.People always feel miserable after contracting this disease, because of the symptoms, as well as the society’s mindset over them.Hence, proper education of the patient, as well as the society, is an adjunct for effective treatment of the disease. By- Dt. Trishala Chopra

LEPROSY TREATMENT- “Hansen’s disease”

Leprosy is also known as the “Hansen’s disease”. It is a highly contagious long-term disease that is caused by the bacterium called the “BACILLI MYCOBACTERIUM LEPRAE”. The disease affects the skin membrane and the nerves by formation lumps on the skin and also leads to the discoloration of the skin.  Critical stages of leprosy le0.ad to deformities and disfigurement. This disease can affect all people irrespective of their age. The bacterium takes a very long time to multiply and therefore it is very difficult to recognize the symptoms and to diagnose the disease at the early stage.

This is a highly transmittable disease and it is usually transmitted from one person to another through the droplets of infected saliva or phlegm. It usually takes about three to five years for the symptoms to appear. Sometimes, it might also take more than twenty years to diagnose. The time of interval between the period of contact and the period of diagnosis is called the “incubation period”. The longer the incubation period is, the more difficult it will be for the doctor to treat the patient. There are a lot of drugs for the treatment of leprosy, which are used as a combination of medicines in multi drug therapy. These should never be used for the patients singly like in mono drug therapies. 

“DAPSONE”, a bacteriostatic medicine that proved to fight against the Leprae bacterium was used as the cure for leprosy for many years. However, this medicine could not cure multibacillary leprosy. Therefore, at present, Dapsone is combined with “RIFAMPICIN” and “CLOFAZIMINE” as a multi drug therapy for curing leprosy. By- Pujha Ramesh

Quick Overview of Leprosy Treatment

Leprosy is one of the most stigmatized diseases in our country. This is in part because of the presentation of this bacterial illness. Leprosy, also called Hansen?s Disease, has a characteristic appearance by manifesting as skin lesions all over the body. The number of lesions are a hint of the severity of the disease. Another common symptom is the loss of nervous sensation in the periphery. Leprosy is differentiated into two main sub types, based on which treatment is set by the World Health Organization.

Paucibacillary leprosy, named as few number of bacteria are seen in the acid fast identification test, is combated by use of antibiotics Rifampicine and Dapsone. Multibacillary leprosy because of the high bacterial load is combated by use of antibiotics Rifampicine and Clofampicine to actively battle the high number of bacteria.

Taking up the challenge to make this world Leprosy-free.

Leprosy is a disease, the name of which is enough to instil fear into the hearts of the patients. Even a few years back, it was as regarded with apprehension, as was cancer. This is because, leprosy is a highly lethal disease and a very nasty one too. Even though it is not highly contagious, contrary to popular disease, it still ranks high enough on the deadly-scale of diseases.

Leprosy is also named Hansen’s disease after the person who discovered it. The disease acts by means of infections and they may range from 5 years to 20 years in duration to activate. The main symptoms of leprosy are the granulomas of nerve cells and tissues, of our eyes, skin and even the respiratory tract. Eventually the patients can no longer feel any pain, and even when their extremities of their bodies fall off due to repeated injuries and infections, they cannot feel a thing. Physical weakness and poor eyesight are additional symptoms. However, leprosy is curable too, with the correct medications. For the case of paucibacillary disease, daily dapsone and monthly rifampicin is to be given for 6 months. However, for multibacillary forms of the disease, daily dapsone and clofazimine accompanied by monthly rifampicin is to be provided for tweleve consecutive months.

Nowadays, MDT or Multi – Drug Therapy is highly effective for curing leprosy and thus patients are no longer conatgious after the first one-month dose. Very safe and also easy to use and apply in field conditions, because of its present representation in calendar blister packs it is highly effective. The relapse rates of leprosy also have remained quite low, and no side effects or internal resistance to this combined drug therapy has been observed, thus making it a very suitable treatment for leprosy and also making sure that in the years to come, the people of the earth will be able to lead leprosy-free times. By- Rounak Bose

For more info: Leprosy treatment in delhi