A continuing focus of Hansen's disease in Texas

To describe epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of Hansen's disease cases in Texas, information was abstracted from records of 810 patients rep orted from 1973 through 1997. Annually, from 18 to 54 patients were reporte d. Average annual incidence rates ranged from 1.9 to 2.4 cases per million population. A majority of the patients were male (63%) and white (77%). Mor e than half (53%) of the patients were born in the United States; a majorit y (83%)of the patients born in the United States were born in Texas. Most ( 76%) patients were diagnosed with multi-bacillary leprosy. Foreign-born pat ients were more likely to be younger at onset and have multi-bacillary dise ase compared with patients born in the United States. Within Texas, an ende mic focus of Hansen's disease exists along the Gulf of Mexico coast.