THE EXTENT OF LEPROSY-RELATED DISABILITIES IN ISTANBUL-LEPROSY-HOSPITAL, TURKEY

This study was carried out between January and December 1992 at the Is tanbul Leprosy Hospital. Seven hundred and eleven leprosy patients wer e evaluated according to their age, gender and type of disease and dis ability according to the WHO disability grading system (1980). There w ere 527 males (74.2%) and 184 females (25.8%) in the group. The averag e age was 50.0 +/- 13.5 years and the average duration of disease was 25.9 +/- 13.2 years. Six hundred and seventy-eight patients (95.4%) we re in borderline (BL) and lepromatous (LL) leprosy. The extent of disa bilities was very high in 711 leprosy patients. It was found that 539 of the patients (75.8%) had eye disabilities, 511 of them (71.8%) had hand disabilities, 521 of them (73.3%) had foot disabilities. The most frequent eye, hand and foot disabilities were a decrease of vision (5 27), acute or chronic iridocyclitis (48.8%), slightly-marked corneal s ensory loss (43.2%), mobile claw hand (33.3%), palmar insensitivity (1 6.3%), plantar ulcer (37.2%) and plantar insensitivity (19.8%). Eye de formities were the most common of the three affected areas in this stu dy.