Blood specimens from 210 leprosy patients (average age 67.4 years old) and 84 staff members (average age 43.5 years old) in National Leprosar-ium Suruga were tested for anti-HCV antibody us-ing Ortho's Ab ELISA system. Among the patients, 17 patients had chronic hepatic dysfunction as well as leprosy.
Twenty of the 210 patients (9.5%) had anti-HCV antibody in their blood. Eleven of the 17 pa-tients (65%) with chronic hepatic dysfunction were positive for anti-HCV antibody. Only one of the staff member was anti-HCV antibody positive. This high positive ratio of anti-HCV antibody in the leprosy patients is similar to the results of another research reported from National Leprosarium Oku Komyo-En. We, therefore, conclude that the pre-valence of anti-HCV antibody in leprosy patients is higher than that of the general population and that anti-HCV antibody is related closely to chronic hepatic dysfunction.
Some investigators have recently reported that there was an increased incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in leprosy patients. And so, it is specu-lated that this is due to the high prevalence of the hepatitis C virus. However, the reason for this high prevalence of anti-HCV antibody in the sample is obscure.

View full abstract

It is well known that monokines, IL-1(Interleukin-1) and TNF (Tumor Necrosis Factor), are produced by macrophages after stimulated with various agents. These cytokines are involved in various aspects of the inflammatory process and immunolo-gical response in addition to their original activities to proliferate T lymphocytes and causing tumor necrosis, respectively. Recently, there have been reported that IL-1 and TNF also play an important role in mycobacterial infections such as granuloma formation.
In the present study, IL-1 and TNF productions were observed by mouse peritoneal exudate and resi-dent macrophages after incubation with heat-killed M. lepraemurium and M. avium in vitro. The pro-duction was enhanced by Phagocytosis of these mycobacteria in a dose dependent manner, and the time course of the production was maximum within 24 hr after phagocytosis of these mycobacteria. It was also shown of morphological changes and en-hanced glucose consumption in media by these mac-rophages.
Above results suggest that phagocytosis of myco-bacteria by macrophages leads to monokine produc-tion, which would not only causes well known im-munological reactions but also makes characteristic phenomena to be observed in mycobacterial infec-tions.

View full abstract

As of the year 1991 there were 358 leprosy pa-tients in National Leprosarium Matsuoka Hoyo-En, including 223 patients (62.3%) who had received the injections of chaulmoogra oil before. Calcinosis cutis caused probably from the injections was noted on 73 patients (32.7%): 67 lepromatous and 6 tuberculosis cases. It has never been reported be-fore that the T type patient suffering from calcino-sis cutis was observed in the cases of the chaul-moogra oil injection in Japan.
The detectable positions of calcinosis cutis were mostly at the injected sites, that is, outside the right brachium followed by bilateral-branchia and crura. In the group of patients with calcinosis cutis, the anti-PGL antibody was negative for the most part. Urinalyses, peripheral blood figure analyses, histopathological tissue examinations of calcium deposition, X-ray diffraction patterns, dif-ferential thermal and gravitational analyses, and chemical analyses were performed on all patients with this disease.
Further, as the result of this study six patients with calcinosis cutis caused by sulpyrine was also found. The major component of the deposit by the drug was calcium phosphate.
These calcinosis cutis were considered to be of trophopathic calcinosis based on the disorder of subcutaneous tissue due to the injections of respec-tive drugs : chaulmoogra oil and sulpyrine.

View full abstract

The author have been engaged in medical consul-tant work with leprosy patients in the field of otorhino-laryngology at the National Leprosarium Tama Zensho-En for five years since 1938, and on the other hand he had many opportunities to con-duct autopsies which helped him in pursuing clinic-al and pathological researches on the upper re-spiratory tract, particularly, from a point of otorhinolaryngological view.
The author wanted to conclude his five years re-search in a book under the title "Leprosy of the upper respiratory tract", but the book was not published unfortunately as being burnt in air raids during the press in 1945.
The postwar appearance of PROMIN and DDS discouraged the author from republishing his work. However, in 1981, the author began to think that the clinical pictures of leprosy lesions in the nose, pharynx and larynx which were painted at the time of Chaulmoogra oil had a scarcity value in litera-ture on the subject and this had led to a decision to republish the book "Leprosy of the upper respira-tory tract-Atlas of Clinical Picture and Notes on the Research (1938-'43)".

View full abstract

Leprosy Prevention Law was proclaimed in 1907 in Japan. According to the regulation, Leprosy Control Policy has got under way by the Govern-ment. In 1909, five leprosaria were established in the leprosy endemic areas by local government to admit vagrant leprosy patients who were estimated as one thousand and two hundred.
The vagabonds had many troubles, especially, they often escaped from leprosaria. Dr. Kensuke Mitsuda who was one of the directors of leprosaria suggested the Government to establish the National Leprosarium in small island to admit them.
In 1930, the Government had Ten-year Program to eradicate leprosy and decided to set up ten thousand beds in existing leprosaria and newly-established National Leprosarium.
The plan has been almost completed by the con-struction of five National Leprosaria by 1940.
The number of in-patients was 9, 125, including 4, 389 in five national institutions.
In 1941, five local leprosaria were transferred their superintendence to the Central Government, after then, in 1943 and 1944, two National Lepro-saria were established. The total number of Nation-al Leprosarium in Japan came to thirteen in 1945.

View full abstract