AIDS and leprosy

AIDS is now an accepted problem in certain leprosy endemic areas, particularly in Central Africa. Infection with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) leads to a profound drop in T-Iymphocyte fu nction. The effect of this is to lower resistance to a wide range of opportunistic and other infections. Among the infections that were recognized early as developing in individuals with AIDS were those with the My cobacterium avium-intracellulare group. However, it was not long before it was realized that lowered resistance to M. tuberculosis itself was also a major problem especially in Central Africa. Tuberculosis in AIDS patients is also a problem in non-tropical areas. There has been not only a slowing down of the annual decline in total morbidity, but also, the suggestion of an upswing in the incidence of the disease in some areas.