Number of leprosy patients declines<\/p>\n
JAKARTA: Indonesia has succeeded in reducing the number of
\nleprosy patients from more than 100,000 in 1990 to 20,000 in
\n2000, Minister of Health and Social Welfare Achmad Sujudi said.<\/p>\n
After attending a meeting on leprosy eradication with World
\nHealth Organization (WHO) representatives here on Saturday, he
\nsaid the ratio of lepers in the country last year was one out of
\nevery 10,000 people.<\/p>\n
In an effort to combat leprosy, the patients are required to
\nremain on their medication for a certain period of time, from six
\nmonths to a year depending on the type of leprosy they have, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Sujudi said the government also agreed to work with WHO's
\nrepresentative office in Jakarta and NLR, a non-governmental
\norganization from the Netherlands, to fight leprosy in the
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
Under the agreement, which runs until 2003, Indonesia will
\nreceive technical and financial aid from WHO and NLR amounting to
\nUS$1.8 million, he said.<\/p>\n
Like tuberculosis, leprosy can only be cured if each patient
\ntakes their medicine throughout the recovery process, he added.<\/p>\n
Sixty-six percent of the country's lepers live in Maluku,
\nNorth Maluku, East Java, West Java, Central Java and South
\nSulawesi.<\/p>\n
WHO said Indonesia has the fourth largest number of lepers in
\nthe world after India, Brazil and Myanmar.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/number-of-leprosy-patients-declines-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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