Hansen’s disease, formerly called leprosy, is a long-lasting bacterial infection that is treatable with antibiotics. Patients are able to recover from the infection and lead normal lives.
The past, however, was not as bright.
Hansen’s disease was feared to the point that sufferers were cast out of their communities and forced to live in “leper colonies.” This went on into the 20th century.
Now, Japan is getting ready to make reparations to those who were forcibly sterilized because of Hansen’s and to those who were separated from their families and sent to live in deplorable conditions. A team of lawyers, working on their own time, hasn’t let the case drop for these aging litigants. In fact, efforts to dismiss the class action suits have been unsuccessful.
But what exactly is Hansen’s disease? As I mentioned, it’s bacterial and can spread from person to person through breathing in the droplets launched when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The symptoms mainly affect the skin, nerves, and mucous membranes.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), some of the symptoms include loss of feeling from nerve damage, skin lesions, extreme pain, growths on the skin, and eye problems that can lead to blindness.
In the United States, Hansen’s is quite rare; however, globally, there are approximately two million individuals who are disabled by the disease. The good news is: Once a person who has been infected begins treatment, they are no longer able to pass the infection along.
