Leprosy in Sydney: a brief account

Individuals with leprosy and those incubating the disease continue to enter New South Wales from endemic areas. With early diagnosis and treatment, the prognosis is good. The diagnosis should be considered in any patient who has lived or worked in a leprosy endemic country and who presents with an unusual or persistent skin erpution (especially if there is associated hypoaesthesia) and/or mononeuritis or mononeuritis multiplex. Occasionally the disease presents inother guises; biopsy of the appropriate tissue and staining for acid-fact bacilli, as well as haematoxylin and eosin, will usually indicate the correct diagnosis.