Abstract
Traditionally, India holds the unenviable position of the origin of leprosy. The disease
is thought to have spread, via trade and war, to China, Egypt, and the Middle East,
and later to Europe and the Americas. From antiquity to modernity, Indian society
treated leprosy singularly for custom and law, a response shaped by both scientific
knowledge and cultural attitudes. Over the past centuries, tireless research by eminent
physicians and scientists working in India have helped establish a better understanding
of clinical, bacteriologic, pathologic, and immunologic aspects of leprosy. Therapeutic
modalities that were initially restricted to chaulmoogra expanded to include newer
anti-leprotic medications and even surgical reconstruction of deformities. India's
future challenges in leprosy control include stigmata, educational knowledge gaps,
and multiple systems of medicine. This contribution is an attempt to comprehensively
discuss the historic aspect of this exclusive disease focusing on the varied scientific
contributions from India.
Keywords
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Published online: July 27, 2022
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