Pure neural leprosy. Diagnostic aspects of a clinical case
*Correspondencia: Dr. José Manuel Pardal Fernández. Servicio de Neurofisiología Clínica. Hospital General de Albacete. Hermanos Falcó, s/n. E-02006 Albacete.
E-mail: josempardal@yahoo.es
Introduction. Leprosy is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae. It is particularly prone to affect the skin and the nerve trunks and, in fact, both are compromised in most infected patients. It is transmitted by exposure to those with the disease and sometimes by reactivation. One uncommon possibility is pure neural leprosy, which is characterised by neuropathy, but without skin lesions. We report the case of a patient with pure neural leprosy and review
the diagnostic aspects.
Case report. A 40-year-old male, an immigrant who was diagnosed and treated for leprosy 20 earlier. The patient visited due to painful paraesthesias and dysesthesias in the hands and legs without the presence of any skin lesions. Acute multiple mononeuritis with mainly ulnar involvement was observed. The disease, typified as paucibacillary/tuberculoid, was treated and in a few weeks there was a clear improvement.
Conclusions. In this case of pure neural leprosy due to reactivation, early diagnosis allowed timely treatment to be established. Evaluation of neuropathy together with clinical, electrophysiological and ultrasound criteria is recommended. By so doing, a high degree of sensitivity is achieved as well as allowing early diagnosis and treatment, and therefore a better functional recovery.
Caso clínico Varón de 40 años, inmigrante, diagnosticado y tratado de lepra 20 años antes. Acudió por parestesias y disestesias dolorosas en las manos y las piernas sin lesiones en la piel. Se demostró mononeuritis múltiple aguda con principal afectación de cubitales. La enfermedad, tipificada como tuberculoide paucibacilar, se trató y en pocas semanas la mejoría fue evidente.
Conclusiones En este caso de lepra neural pura por reactivación, el diagnóstico temprano permitió un rápido tratamiento. Es recomendable la evaluación de la neuropatía integrada con criterios clínicos, electrofisiológicos y ecográficos. De este modo se consigue una alta sensibilidad y especialmente una precocidad en el diagnóstico y la instauración del tratamiento, y por consecuencia una mejor recuperación funcional.
