Free treatment available to leprosy-inflicted persons
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-01-25 16:19

Altogether 2,438 leprosy-inflicted disabled persons from 11 Chinese provinces were treated free of charge during the 2000-2005 period.

According to Wang Xinxian, vice chairman of China Disabled Persons' Federation, there are now 230,000 leprosy sufferers across the country, of whom, a half are disabled by the infectious disease.

During the 10th five-year-plan period (2000-2005), 12 medical teams were dispatched to carry out free treatment on the 2,438 disabled persons caused by leprosy at a cost of 8.4 million yuan (about 1.04 million U.S. dollars) which was deducted from the lottery-based public benefit fund operated by the federation.

"The aiding program has not only played a positive role in extinguish the bias toward leprosy patients, but also helped train a group of medical workers for corrective therapy in the aid recipient regions," said Wang.

Leprosy is one of the oldest recorded diseases in the world, first mentioned in writing in 600 B.C. It can incubate in the human body for up to 20 years and is transmitted via droplets from the nose and mouth during contact with untreated, infected sufferers.

It is a chronic disease, caused by a bacterium, Mycobacterium leprae, which is not highly infectious but affects skin and nerve endings, and can cause permanent damage to a patient's skin, limbs and eyes.