Epidemiology of Leprosy in China,2021:An Update

Objective:Leprosy is an infectious diseases that remains a concerning public health issue.The infection of Mycobacterium leprae still exists at the county level in hard-to-access areas in southwest China.An accurate analysis of the prevalence of leprosy in various regions is necessary for the formulation of prevention and control strategies,so we conducted this study to describe the epidemiological characteristics of leprosy in China in 2021 and provide essential information for future national leprosy control and prevention strategies.Methods:We collected epidemiological data of leprosy from 31 provinces,autonomous regions,and municipalities of China(except for Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan)provided by the Leprosy Management Information System.We performed a comparative analysis of the epidemiological features of patients with leprosy including age,sex,geographical distribution,and grade of disability.Results:In total,374 newly detected leprosy cases were reported nationwide in China in 2021,giving an incidence rate of 0.27 per million population,which represented a decrease of 7.9%compared with 2020.Among the population with leprosy in 2021 that comprised 238 males(63.6%)and 136 females(36.4%),1.9%(7/374)were children younger than 15 years,92.8%(347/374)had multibacillary leprosy,and 18.2%(68/374)had grade 2 disability.More than half of the new leprosy cases(54.8%,205/374)were distributed in southwest China.There were 33 relapsed leprosy cases reported in 2021.By the end of 2021,there were 1,897 registered leprosy cases reported nationwide,giving a prevalence rate of 1.35 per million population.Conclusion:The leprosy epidemic in China shows a downward trend in terms of the prevalence and incidence rates.However,the high prevalence of leprosy in southwest China is still a matter of concern.

Epidemiological Features of Leprosy in China,2020

Objective:To describe the epidemiological characteristics of leprosy in China in 2020 and provide a basis for optimizing leprosy prevention and control strategies.Methods:We collected leprosy data from the Leprosy Management Information System in China,which includes data from 31 provinces,autonomous regions,and municipalities,except for Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan,and then performed a descriptive analysis of these data.Results:A total of 406 newly detected leprosy cases were reported nationwide in China in 2020,giving an incidence rate of 0.29 per 1,000,000 population.Among the population with leprosy,the proportions of children younger than 15 years,multibacillary cases,and cases with grade 2 disability were 1.2%,93.3%,and 17.7%,respectively.Southwest China was the region with the largest proportion of new leprosy cases(54.7%).There were 31 relapse leprosy cases reported in 2020.By the end of 2020,there were 1,893 registered leprosy cases reported nationwide,giving a prevalence rate of 1.35 per 1,000,000 population.Conclusion:Leprosy is at a low endemic level in China in terms of the prevalence and incidence rates.However,the geographical distribution of leprosy in China is unbalanced;leprosy is highly endemic in southwest China,including Yunnan,Guizhou,Sichuan,Guangdong,and Guangxi.

Leprosy statistics in China, 2017

Objective To describe the epidemiologic characteristics of leprosy in China and to provide evidence for making specific strategies in the leprosy control programme.Methods We used a descriptive analysis method to analyse the leprosy data from 2017 provided by the Leprosy Management Information System in China (LEPMIS) covering all the provinces of China excluding Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan.Results In 2017,634 newly detected cases of leprosy were reported,with a case detection rate of 0.046 per 100,000 individuals.The proportions of cases in children under 15,multi-bacillary cases,and cases with grade 2 disability were 1.4%,91.8%,and 20.0%,respectively.A total of 52 relapse cases,among which 28 cases occurred after multi-drug therapy,were reported.By the end of 2017,the total number of registered cases was 2,697,with a prevalence rate of 0.194 per 100,000 individuals.Conclusion In China,the overall leprosy prevalence is still at a low level,but its distribution is unbalanced,with higher incidence in Yunnan,Sichuan,Guizhou,Guangdong.To continue making progress toward eliminating leprosy,control efforts must be sustained over the coming years.

Epidemiological Characteristics of Leprosy in China,2018

Objective::To describe the epidemiological characteristics of leprosy in China in 2018 and provide the essential evidences for leprosy control.Methods::We collected data of leprosy cases nationwide from Leprosy Management Information System in China(LEPMIS)except Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan.And then we performed a descriptive and comparative analysis.Results::A total of 521 new leprosy cases were detected nationwide in 2018,with a case detection rate of 0.037/100,000.The proportion of children under 15 years of age,multi-bacillary(MB)cases,and cases with WHO grade 2 disability(G2D)were 1.3%,89.4%,and 19.0%,respectively.There were 2,479 registered cases of leprosy in China by the end of 2018,accounting for a prevalence rate of 0.178/100,000,with 43 replase cases.Southwest China separately accounted for 312/521(59.9%)newly detected cases and 1,180/2,479(47.6%)registered cases of leprosy in China.Conclusion::China is a low endemic country for leprosy and the detection rate was much lower than the global average.Southwest China is still the key regions for leprosy control,including Yunnan,Guizhou,and Sichuan.In addition,leprosy in low endemic provinces also needs to be focused.

Leprosy Update in China, 2019

Objective:To study the epidemiology of leprosy in China in 2019 and give suggestions to improve future leprosy control activities.Methods:We collected leprosy data from the Leprosy Management Information System in China,which includes data from 31 Chinese provinces,autonomous regions,and municipalities,except for Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan.We then performed a descriptive analysis of these data.Results:A total of 464 new leprosy cases were reported nationwide in 2019,with a case detection rate of 0.033/100,000.The proportions of children younger than 15 years,multibacillary cases,and cases with World Health Organization grade 2 disability were 1.3%,90.3%,and 21.6%,respectively.A total of 2,219 leprosy cases were registered in China by the end of 2019,giving a prevalence rate of 0.158/100,000.Fifty-six counties had a prevalence rate of more than 1/100,000,and most of them were located in Southwest China.There were 31 reported relapse cases.Conclusion:The prevalence of leprosy has improved continuously throughout China,but the southwest region is still an area of concern.