LEPROSY

● It is an infectious disease that affects the skin. However it can also involve the nose, eyes, throat and testicles.
● It is directly transmitted from man to man
○ Acquired through prolonged exposure to an untreated individual.
○ Transmitted through droplet infection in such ways like coughing and sneezing.
● It is known to have a very long incubation period which ranges from 5 to 15 years
● Diagnosis of leprosy:
○ Mainly based on clinical signs and symptoms
○ Mabilis din mahalata ang potential patients of leprosy pero tests are needed to confirm (from orientation)
● Signs and Symptoms:
○ Pale or pink patches in the skin
■ Paucibacillary leprosy: characterized by 2 to 5 lesions / patches on the skin
■ Multibacillary : greater than 5 patches
● Most patients are MB because of the discrimination and stigma that they face. This prompts them to
visit the hospital in a later time or when the disease has already worsened.
○ Reddish skin patches with sensory loss
○ Finger and toes shortened and deformed
○ Formication: a type of hallucination where an individual feels insects crawling
○ Deformity and paralysis
○ Edema
○ Ulceration on the skin
○ Muscle weakness
○ Poor eyesight
○ Other:
■ Loss of sweating and hair growth
■ Collapse of nose bridge
■ Enlargement of breasts for male
● TREATMENT:
○ Multi-drug therapy
■ Combination of 2 or more anti leprosy drugs that renders a patient to be non-infectious within one month after
starting the treatment
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Dapsone : anti-infective particularly for leprosy
○ Develop allergic reactions
● Rifampicin: most known anti-infective for PTB; but can also be used to treat several mycobacterial
infections such as leprosy.
○ Slightly reddish discoloration of urine; body malaise, joint and muscle pains
● Clofazimine: similar to dapsone, an antiinfective that is used to treat leprosy
○ Gastric irritation; skin discoloration
● CONTRA INDICATIONS:
○ Cases with severe liver and kidney disease
○ Severe hypersensitivity to andy MDT drugs
○ Severe anemia
● PREVENTION
○ BCG immunization
○ Avoid prolonged exposure
○ Consult a health personnel if you suspect that your symptoms indicate leprosy.
● TREATMENT IS COMPLETED
○ Paucibacillary patients have taken the necessary medications for 6-9 months, while multibacillary patients have taken
the medicines for 12-18 months

BOTULISM (botchulism)

- It is a rare but serious illness caused by a toxin that attacks the body’s nerves and causes difficulty breathing, muscle
paralysis, and even death.

- A type of bacteria called Clostridium botulinum produces the toxin. (boowchulaynum)

- Foodborne botulism commonly occurs when homemade canned foods are improperly preserved or stored.

- Symptoms of foodborne botulism typically begin 12-36 hours after the toxin gets into your body. But depending on how much
toxin you consumed, the start of symptoms may range from a few hours to a few days.

- Symptoms include:
 - Trouble swallowing or speaking
- Dry mouth
- Facial Weakness on both sides of the face
- Blurred vision
- Trouble breathing
- Vomiting
- Paralysis

Treatment
- Patients may need respiratory support for a long period usually 2-6 weeks even if in some cases it may be longer.
- Gastrointestinal decontamination should be performed in case of foodborne botulism, in order to remove the spores and
toxins from the gut.
- Antitoxin should be administered as soon as suspected if botulism intoxication is made.