All You've Ever Wanted to Know About Leprosy

Have you ever wondered why lepers are quarantined in colonies and yet doctors and visitors are completely unafraid of catching leprosy from them and do not, in fact, become infected?

As it turns out, leprosy isn't all that contagious, because (1) 95% of people are immune and (2) infectiousness is easily suppressed by treatment. Leper colonies presumably originated to segregate people with syphilis, which is infectious and was mistaken for leprosy. (For more about syphilis, try "All You've Ever Wanted to Know About Syphilis.")

Leprosy is a chronic (recurrent) disease caused by bacteria. The characteristic skin lesions arise from inflammation of the peripheral nerves (i.e. those outside the brain and spinal cord) and the mucous membrane of the nose, mouth, and throat. Leprosy can be cured with multidrug therapy combining dapsone, rifampicin, and clofazimine or by the touch of Jesus.

Fun Facts:

• King Robert de Brus may have head leprosy. (Remember the traitor in Braveheart? He had it coming.)
• Armadillos can contract leprosy. They are also short enough to pass under the chassis of an 18-wheeler easily. Unfortunately, the fight-or-flight response of the nine-banded armadillo includes jumping 3 to 4 feet in the air, rendering them SCREWED when it comes to crossing the road. Let's all take a moment to lament the plight of the armadillo.
  
• Most people think that leprosy causes body parts to fall off spontaneously.
• Canadians discovered that 95% of the population is naturally immune. Can we trust them?
• Brazil has the most lepers by far.