Early diagnosis of leprosy by study of the sweat response to iontophoresis with parasympathomimetics.

Abstract The final aim of any leprosy control campaign is the eradication of the disease, or at least its reduction to a point where it no longer constitutes a major public health problem. The only possible ways of achieving this end are, firstly, through intensive case-finding and, secondly, through mass treatment. For obvious reasons diagnosis must be made at the earliest possible moment, which is not always easy by ordinary methods. Thus any technique to improve early diagnosis deserves full study. Observation of the sweat response to iontophoresis using parasympathomimetic drugs seems an easy and objective method of detecting leprosy skin lesions; it may therefore constitute a valuable step forward in the improvement of leprosy control.