The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says cases of the infectious disease of leprosy have become more common in Florida in recent years, and some health officials believe that the ancient disease may now be endemic in the state.
The federal health agency stated in a report that about one-fifth of all leprosy cases in the United States are found in central Florida and that about 81 percent of all cases in the country are located in Florida.
Leprosy, a chronic infectious disease also known as Hansen’s disease, is caused by the Mycobacterium leprae bacteria and has appeared in literature and religious texts—notably the Bible—since ancient times. It affects the skin, peripheral nerves, mucosa of the upper respiratory tract, and the eyes.
Within the United States, leprosy has historically been uncommon, and most cases came from individuals who had recently emigrated to the country. But since 2000, cases have gradually been rising, doubling in the Southeastern United States over the past decade, according to the CDC.
It also noted that about 34 percent of all cases reported from 2015 to 2020 have been 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. Travel to Florida should be considered when conducting leprosy contact tracing in any state,” the CDC stated in its latest report.
The agency stated that some cases in central Florida had “no clear evidence of zoonotic exposure or traditionally known risk factors,” noting that there was a reported case of lepromatous leprosy in central Florida in a man who didn’t have “risk factors for known transmission routes.”
The CDC is warning doctors to investigate leprosy when examining individuals who have traveled to Florida or elsewhere in the Southeastern United States.
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