A cross-sectional study of clinicopathological patterns in leprosy patients in a tertiary care centre

• Author Details:   
• Shivani Pravinchandra Parmar ^*
• Shashikant Mavadiya

Introduction: Mycobacterium leprae is the causative agent of leprosy, a persistent infectious granulomatous disease.  53.6% of newly reported cases worldwide each year still originate in India.  The skin and peripheral nerves are the primary areas affected by leprosy.  It can manifest in a variety of clinical and histological ways, contingent upon the host's cellular immunological response.  Accurate leprosy diagnosis and type depend on histopathological analysis and the presence of lepra bacilli.
Aim: The objective is to evaluate the clinicopathological association between leprosy lesions.
Materials and Methods: Twenty skin biopsy specimens from patients with a clinical diagnosis of leprosy were the subject of a three-month cross-sectional investigation at the Pathology Department of SBKS Medical College and Research Institute, Piparia, Vadodara.  Clinicohistopathological correlation was performed after skin biopsies were collected, processed, and stained with H&E stain and Fite-faraco stain to identify histopathological forms of leprosy.
Results: The age range of 41–60 years old accounted for the majority of cases in this study (45%).  The ratio of men to women was 1.5:1.  The most prevalent kind was borderline tuberculoid leprosy (8 cases, 40%), which was followed by lepromatous leprosy (4 instances, 20%).  All instances of lepromatous leprosy (LL), borderline lepromatous leprosy (BL), and histoid leprosy tested positive for Fite-faraco.  55% of instances showed clinico-pathological concordance.
Conclusion: Fite-faraco staining and histopathological analysis are advised in all clinically suspected leprosy cases in order to aid in precise leprosy subtyping and diagnosis.

Keywords: Leprosy, Clinico-pathological, Fite-faraco stain, Skin biopsy.