[Rheumatic involvement in Hansen's disease]

The classical articular manifestations of Hansen's disease are the neurogenic or Charcot's arthropathy, osteitis and specific or non specific osteoarthritis. However, inflammatory mechanisms have been associated to arthritic episodes in leprosy patients, leading to rheumatoid-like picture as suggested by clinical, biopsy and laboratorial data. The extra-articular manifestations also mimicry those of some connective tissue diseases. The differencial diagnosis between rheumatic syndromes and hanseniasis is important for as early indentification of hanseniasis and prevention of severe sequelae and transmission.