[Comparative study between the Mitsuda test and the human leukocyte antigens in leprosy patients]

In this study, we aimed to compare the Mitsuda skin test with the alleles HLA-DR2/HLA-DR3 and HLA-DQ1, in relation to the clinical forms of leprosy in 176 patients (50 TT, 50 LL and 76 B). The results obtained did not reveal any association between the Mitsuda reaction and the HLA alleles in the clinical forms isolated. However, when analyzed according to Mitsuda test response, a significant association was found between patients with negative Mitsuda reaction and HLA-DQ1 (p=0.002). No association was observed between positive Mitsuda reaction and the HLA-DR2/DR3 alleles. We concluded that the allele HLA-DQ1 has an important participation when there is no response to the Mitsuda test. We suggest that more specific studies should be developed on this allele.