HANSENS DISEASE
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Here in the Philippines, Hansen's disease (Leprosy) is very endemic in some
of our provinces. Majority of the time, our treatment is based on the WHO
recommendation where the government provides Multidrug therapy (MDT) packs
for free. For multibacillary (MB) (LL, BL, BB), we give Rifampicin 600mg OM,
Dapsone 100 mg OD & Clofazimime 50 mg OD for 2 years while paucibacillary
(PB) (TT, BT) we give Rifampicin 600 mg OM, Dapsone 100mg OD for minimum of
6 months.
If I could ask the group their experiences in treating Hansen's. Do you add
other drugs to the MDT regimen? Any experiences with the new ROM therapy
(Rifampicin 600mg OM, Ofloxacin 200mg BID, Minocycline 100 OD), 6 months for
PB, 12 months for MB? Hansen's with AIDS?
I personally feel that the WHO recommendation only gives minimum dosages and
would like to be a little more aggressive in my treatment.
Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
 
Jonathan Yu, MD
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