[Terminal innervation in 3 cases of leprous neuropathy (author's transl)]

Three cases of leprosy are reported. In all patients, the diagnosis was made by finding Hansen bacilli in skin lesions, nasal secretions and ears, and the immunological typing of leprosy was established. Conduction velocity of motor and sensory nerves was measured and muscle biopsies were obtained. Histochemical typing of muscle fibers and measurement of the terminal innervation ratio of motor axon vitally stained with methylene blue were performed. A subclinical involvement of peripheral motor nerves was demonstrated by these investigations.