Background Leprosy is unique in its psychosocial aspect but this has drawn only limited research attention especially in the developing countries where leprosy is most endemic.
Aims The aims of this study were to identify some of the psychosocial problems encountered by patients with leprosy and compare same with those suffering from tinea vesicolor in Lagos.
Method The instruments administered to the subjects consist of a questionnaire to elicit demographic/ psychosocial variables and the 30-item
General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30). Data was analyzed using the 10th
version of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 10).
Results A significantly higher psychological distress level with probable psychiatric morbidity of 36.7% was obtained in the leprosy compared to tinea vesicolor patients(16.7%). There was a significant association between higher psychological distress in patients with leprosy and illness duration and rejection (by family, friends and society). Other psychosocial factors like displacement as a result of illness, knowledge about the disease, reporting for treatment after diagnosis, and reactions of friends to patients were significantly associated with psychological distress in patients with leprosy.
Conclusion There was a higher rate of psychiatric morbidity among patients with leprosy than the controls. Similar findings have been reported from other part of the world. Certain psychosocial factors correlated strongly with psychiatric morbidities in patients with leprosy. The findings have been
discussed and the implications highlighted. 54
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