Leprosy And Buruli Ulcer

A highly disabling infectious disease in developing countries, leprosy, or Hansen’s disease, is caused by Mycobacterium leprae, and is still very relevant for the human community due to its transmissible nature, variable presentation and composite clinical picture. Early identification of leprosy and Buruli ulcer (also caused by a Mycobacterium, M. ulcerans) is critical to prevent spreading and patient disability and to establish appropriate therapy. This richly illustrated, completely revised second edition of Leprosy and Buruli Ulcer describes the characteristic signs of both these diseases, and contents include abnormalities of the skin, nerves, eyes, hands, feet, testes and bone. It also presents the latest diagnostic tools to identify and quantify organ damage to enable readers to recognize and treat this composite systemic disorder, which can represent a true medical emergency if affecting eyes, nerves, and kidneys. Further, it includes additional chapters on leprosy in childhood, prophylaxis and vaccines. For both leprosy and Buruli ulcer, this handy guide helps practitioners and nursing personnel to spot the different clinical manifestations, make a prompt diagnosis and apply effective treatment of both these diseases.

A major objective of this open access book is to summarize the current status of Buruli Ulcer (BU) research for the first time. It will identify gaps in our knowledge, stimulate research and support control of the disease by providing insight into approaches for surveillance, diagnosis, and treatment of Buruli Ulcer. Book chapters will cover the history, epidemiology diagnosis, treatment and disease burden of BU and provide insight into the microbiology, genomics, transmission and virulence of Mycobacterium ulcerans.

This book is a printed edition of the Special Issue Skin-Related Neglected Tropical Diseases (Skin-NTDs)—A New Challenge that was published in TropicalMed

Leprosy (Hansen’s disease) is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae. It is one of the most disabling disorders in developing countries, with a peak incidence in the tropics and subtropics. With globalization, leprosy is now increasingly spreading to the western world. The impact of this infectious disorder is relevant for the human community due to its transmissible nature, and also important for the individual because of its debilitating consequences. Leprosy is a multifaceted systemic disease with variable presentation and clinical picture. Its identification may therefore not be straightforward, especially outside endemic areas. During its chronic course, leprosy is characterized by acute phases during which there may be exacerbation of symptoms and rapid progression of damage. When leprosy affects the eyes, nerves, and kidneys, it can represent a true medical emergency. The aim of this book is to make the reader familiar with the characteristic signs of disease, including abnormalities of the skin, nerves, eyes, hands, feet, testes, and bone. Early identification of the disease is critical to prevent patient disability and establish appropriate therapy. Emphasis will be given to the current diagnostic tools to identify and quantify the organ damage, including electrophysiology, ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging, laboratory tests, and histopathology. Specific topics such as leprosy and pregnancy, leprosy and HIV infection, epidemiology, and leprosy control will also be covered.

Forgotten People, Forgotten Diseases Second Edition The neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are the most common infections of the world's poor, but few people know about these diseases and why they are so important. This second edition of Forgotten People, Forgotten Diseases provides an overview of the NTDs and how they devastate the poor, essentially trapping them in a vicious cycle of extreme poverty by preventing them from working or attaining their full intellectual and cognitive development. Author Peter J. Hotez highlights a new opportunity to control and perhaps eliminate these ancient scourges, through alliances between nongovernmental development organizations and private-public partnerships to create a successful environment for mass drug administration and product development activities. Forgotten People, Forgotten Diseases also Addresses the myriad changes that have occurred in the field since the previous edition. Describes how NTDs have affected impoverished populations for centuries, changing world history. Considers the future impact of alliances between nongovernmental development organizations and private-public partnerships. Forgotten People, Forgotten Diseases is an essential resource for anyone seeking a roadmap to coordinate global advocacy and mobilization of resources to combat NTDs.

Infections in Systemic Autoimmune Diseases: Risk Factors and Management, Volume Sixteen describes the state-of-the-art of the risk factors and management treating the most common systemic autoimmune diseases (SADS). This updated volume consists of an introductory chapter that provides a brief overview of what different types of infectious diseases exist, followed by eight chapters detailing risk factors, guidelines and recommendations per different disease and bacterial infections. International in scope, the list of more than 20 contributors from Europa and America reads like a who's who of clinical researchers in the field. Written by leading international clinical/surgical and scientific experts on Infection problems in systemic autoimmune diseases Provides a practical guide to the safer treatment of infections in patients with autoimmune diseases Includes a number of problems and recommendation that cannot be found in other books Designed as a 'guide to clinical practice' for management and risk interventions required by patients with SAD's

This well-illustrated book is a comprehensive guide to the cutaneous clinical presentations of mycobacterial infections. The Mycobacterium genus includes over 170 species, nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) having been added to the obligate human pathogens such as M. tuberculosis and M. leprae. NTM are widely distributed in the environment with high isolation rates worldwide; the skin is a major target with variable clinical manifestations. A current resurgence in tuberculosis is aggravated by the synergy with human immunodeficiency virus, the breakdown of health care systems, and the rise in multidrug-resistant disease, as the incidence of leprosy remains stable, at around 250,000 new cases annually, regardless of effective antibiotic therapy. Presentations of various cutaneous infections caused by mycobacteria may be overlooked by clinicians owing the lack of familiarity with tuberculosis, leprosy, and the related NTM clinical features. This handy guide will help the dermatologist to spot the different clinical manifestations, make a prompt diagnosis, and apply effective treatment.

"The presence, or absence, of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) can be seen as a proxy for poverty and for the success of interventions aimed at reducing poverty. Today, coverage of the public-health interventions recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) against NTDs may be interpreted as a proxy for universal health coverage and shared prosperity - in short, a proxy for coverage against neglect. As the world's focus shifts from development to sustainable development, from poverty eradication to shared prosperity, and from disease-specific goals to universal health coverage, control of NTDs will assume an important role towards the target of achieving universal health coverage, including individual financial risk protection. Success in overcoming NTDs is a "litmus test" for universal health coverage against NTDs in endemic countries. The first WHO report on NTDs (2010) set the scene by presenting the evidence for how these interventions had produced results. The second report (2013) assessed the progress made in deploying them and detailed the obstacles to their implementation. This third report analyses for the first time the investments needed to achieve the scale up of implementation required to achieve the targets of the WHO Roadmap on NTDs and universal coverage against NTDs. INVESTING TO OVERCOME THE GLOBAL IMPACT OF NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES presents an investment strategy for NTDs and analyses the specific investment case for prevention, control, elimination and eradication of 12 of the 17 NTDs. Such an analysis is justified following the adoption by the Sixty-sixth World Health Assembly in 2013 of resolution WHA6612 on neglected tropical diseases, which called for sufficient and predictable funding to achieve the Roadmap's targets and sustain control efforts. The report cautions, however, that it is wise investment and not investment alone that will yield success. The report registers progress and challenges and signals those that lie ahead. Climate change is expected to increase the spread of several vector-borne NTDs, notably dengue, transmission of which is directly influenced by temperature, rainfall, relative humidity and climate variability primarily through their effects on the vector. Investments in vector-borne diseases will avoid the potentially catastrophic expenditures associated with their control. The presence of NTDs will thereby signal an early warning system for climate-sensitive diseases. The ultimate goal is to deliver enhanced and equitable interventions to the most marginalized populations in the context of a changing public-health and investment landscape to ensure that all peoples affected by NTDs have an opportunity to lead healthier and wealthier lives."--Publisher's description.