CDC warns of increase in leprosy infections

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned about the increase in leprosy infections. A report from the federal agency showed that 159 new cases were reported nationwide in 2020, doubling the number of incidences reported in the last decade.

The federal agency discovered that at least one-fifth of the cases are in Florida. Similarly, it reported that 34% of all reported cases between 2015 and 2020 were locally transmitted.

"Florida, USA, has witnessed an increased incidence of leprosy cases lacking traditional risk factors. Those trends, in addition to decreasing diagnoses in foreign-born persons, contribute to rising evidence that leprosy has become endemic in the southeastern United States,” the federal agency said.

In addition, it warned that:

Most cases are locally transmitted

In that regard, the CDC indicated that there are several cases in central Florida are not clearly linked to animals exposure or traditionally known risk factors. "We report a case of lepromatous leprosy in central Florida in a man without risk factors for known transmission routes (...) Whereas leprosy in the United States previously affected persons who had immigrated from leprosy-endemic areas, ≈34% of new case-patients during 2015–2020 appeared to have locally acquired the disease," the CDC report states.

Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, is a chronic infectious disease caused by the acid-fast bacillus Mycobacterium leprae. It mainly affects the skin and the peripheral nervous system, and the course of the disease depends largely on individual susceptibility to Mycobacterium leprae. Contact tracing is essential to identify sources and reduce transmission.