PHYSICAL DISABILITY AND ITS REPERCUSSION IN SOCIAL AND FUNCTIONAL PATIENTS WITH LEPROSY POST-DISCHARGE FROM MULTIDRUG THERAPY

ITRODUCTION/OBJECTIVE: This paper sought to analyze the clinical characteristics, social insertion and functional limitations in patients with leprosy. They were evaluated in a national reference university hospital in southeast Brazil during the period 1998 to 2013. METHODS: One hundred thirty six patients (aged 12–82 years) with leprosy were enrolled in a cross-sectional descriptive study after discharge from multidrug therapy treatment. Participants were submitted to clinical and functional evaluations as well as characterization of the restrictions to social involvement, through SALSA (Screening of Activity Limitation And Safety Awareness) and Participation Scales. RESULTS/CONCLUSIONS: The patients (79 males, 57 females) had a mean age of 44.67 ± 15.05 years. The most prevalent characteristics were male (79%), multibacillary (86%) and some disability (91.2%). From those, 33.8% were classified as degree 2 disability. At the moment of evaluation 56.5% of patients reported pain and 27.2% had used corticosteroid therapy. Ninety-five patients underwent neural decompression or tendon transfer surgery. Age under 64 years and complaint about pain represented a higher risk to limitation of activity. 75% of total patients had functional limitation and 52.2% had social restriction. Despite the context of a reference hospital, it's important to highlight the late diagnostics in this study. Our findingssuggest that being over the age of 64 was a protective factor for activity limitations, which may be related with a higher impact of the disease in the young, causing more limitations on activities. The treatment with MDTeradicates M. Leprae, however it doesn’t overcome the physical deformities already in place.