3 Leprosy Cases Confirmed in Florida

Health officials in Florida’s Volusia County have been battling a rare disease many people believe long eradicated.

Three people over the last five months have been confirmed to have leprosy, CBS news is reporting. In two of those cases, health officials believe the disease was contracted through contact with nine-banded armadillos.

The small, cat-sized creatures are not native to Florida, but are commonly found across most of the state, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports. The creatures are aptly named after the nine breaks found in the leather-like armor that covers their bodies.

A 2011 report in the New England Journal of Medicine implicates the nine-banded armadillo as a possible carrier of leprosy in the southern United States.

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Leprosy is a rare condition that is caused by bacteria known as mycobacterium leprae, according to the World Health Organization. The incubation period of the disease is about five years and symptoms can take as long as 20 years to develop, the agency notes. The disease mainly impacts the skin, peripheral nerves and the upper respiratory tract. It is curable and not considered highly contagious. Transmission occurs through droplets from the nose and mouth and frequent contact with those who suffer from untreated cases.

An estimated 232,857 cases were reported worldwide in 2012 with figures representing reports out of 115 countries, WHO noted.

Leprosy is not entirely unheard of in the United States. About 150 to 250 new cases are reported annually with roughly 10 of those cases originating yearly in Florida, Click Orlando reported.

Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is treatable through the use of a combination of antibiotics, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. The course of treatment may last from about 6 months up to 2 years. Clinics run by the National Hansen’s Disease Program offer treatment for those diagnosed with the condition in the United States.

For more information about leprosy, visit the CDC online.

Image courtesy of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

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