Review Article on Beliefs and Myths on Leprosy
Journal Title: Saudi Journal of Medicine - Year 2017, Vol 2, Issue 2
Abstract
Abstract: Leprosy is also called as ‘numbing skin disease’ or ‘Hansen’s disease’.The stigma attached to leprosy persists in many countries.At an early stage, leprosy may manifest itself only in mild skin lesions, but if left untreated,these lesions can become much more noticeable.Some people with leprosy may have a distinctive odour caused by infected ulcers. Since ancient times, leprosy has been interpreted as God’s punishment of the sinful.Other causes of leprosy which people have been reported to traditionally believe are witchcraft, a curse, trespassing of food taboos, contagion, and being hereditary.Leprosy is more a social problem rather than just a medical disease. A review of the literature showed that the stigma, misconceptions and negative attitudes towards leprosy patients are prevalent in most communities. Most misconceptions pertaining to leprosy, in particular the beliefs in heredity, evil spirits and contact with prostitutes as causes of leprosy, were found to be most common. In addition,deformities arising as a consequence of untreated leprosy played a significant part in increasing the stigma to leprosy. Health providers should also learn problem-solving skills to assess the patients’ reasons for defaulting treatment or follow-up and act on them. This means that they should be trained on techniques to analyse and motivate behaviour change. Keywords: leprosy, myths, beliefs, review article
Authors and Affiliations
Uzma eram, Deoshree akhouri, Shazia Parveen
Keywords
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