This chapter discusses the antibacterial treatment of leprosy infections. Antibiotic treatment is a key component of leprosy treatment, as it is vital to prevent the progression of the infection. Treatment with rifampin and other antibiotics is highly effective and cures 98% of patients with the ...leprosy infection. Furthermore, the relapse rate is very low, at about 1% over 5–10 years. There is little M. leprae drug resistance in leprosy and few reports of multi-drug resistance (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). An antibiotic treatment may take months or years to produce clinical improvement, especially in patients with an initial high bacterial index (BI). more

In the Indian state of Bihar, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a major public health issue that has been aggravated by the rising incidence of new Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections. In endemic areas, the risk of VL infections in patients living with HIV (PLHIV) is higher. It is important t...o investigate the disease-related knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) of PLHIV in Bihar in order to monitor HIV/VL co-infection. Adequate knowledge, a positive attitude, and good practices for VL control are essential to stamp out the disease. This study investigated the KAP towards VL in HIV patients attending antiretroviral therapy (ART) clinic at ICMR-RMRIMS, Patna. more

For this report, the Task Force commissioned additional background papers on health taxes to update the evidence, assess short-term revenue potential, and understand the role of health taxes in the current era of multiple crises. We find that health taxes continue to be underutilized despite th...e powerful impact they have in reducing preventable death and disease — a particularly glaring act of neglect in a world that has experienced a massive pandemic. more