Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, is a chronic infectious disease that usually affects the skin and nerves and has plagued the human race over many years. This disease, caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium Leprae, was discovered in 1873 by a scientist named of Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen, but has been found in the Veda books from India that date back as far as 600-400 BC. In this paper, every aspect of this ancient, horrible disease will be discussed in great detail.
M. leprae infection is one that occurs for the most part in human beings. But, in 1975 there were nine armadillos that were identified as a carrier of this disease. These armadillos were infested with large quantities of the harmful bacilli in their nasal secretions and mammary ducts meaning transmission primarily occurred through nasorespiratory routes and the mother's milk. Lesions associated with the disease were found on the armadillo's body producing another proposed idea of a transmission method. Researchers think that "the major source of spread infection is probably nasal secretions of those infected with lepromatous that have huge numbers of bacilli in the nasal cavity"(Wathen 3). Another transdermal way of spreading the disease is that sharing of clothing with an infected individual. This proposed idea of transdermal spreading has not be made a fact but is currently being tested on monkeys (poor monkeys!). .
It is believed that Leprosy was to have originated on the Asian continent a long time before Christ. On the continent the disease remained somewhat dormant due to the fact that in the era B.C., people lived in small villages that were somewhat isolated. Over time though, these small villages merged with other small villages to form much larger establishments. This merging of village gave the disease-causing bacteria a great opportunity to become exposed to new people infecting and spreading at a rapid rate.