Origins of Leprosy

"The oldest known skeleton showing signs of leprosy has been found in India and may help solve the puzzle of where the disease originated. The skeleton, about 4,000 years old, was found at the site of Balathal, near Udaipur in northwestern India. Historians have long considered the Indian subcontinent to be the source of the leprosy that was first reported in Europe in the fourth century B.C., shortly after the armies of Alexander the Great returned from India." From the NY Times, May 27, 2009

Traditionally, leprologists are dermatologists. The disorder is endlessly challenging and is of great intellectual interest. These new findings are of import to historians and students of medicine.

You can Read the NY Times article Here
and/or the PLoS One report Here
PLoS Abstract: Results indicate that lepromatous leprosy was present in India by 2000 B.C. This evidence represents the oldest documented skeletal evidence for the disease. Our results indicate that Vedic burial traditions in cases of leprosy were present in northwest India prior to the first millennium B.C. Our results also support translations of early Vedic scriptures as the first textual reference to leprosy. The presence of leprosy in skeletal material dated to the post-urban phase of the Indus Age suggests that if M. leprae evolved in Africa, the disease migrated to India before the Late Holocene, possibly during the third millennium B.C. at a time when there was substantial interaction among the Indus Civilization, Mesopotamia, and Egypt. This evidence should be impetus to look for additional skeletal and molecular evidence of leprosy in India and Africa to confirm the African origin of the disease.

We'd love to hear your take on this.

The mandible pictured above demonstrates root exposure, alveolar resorption, antemortem tooth loss, and a small apical abscess at the left third premolar. Image is from PLoS One article.

Who Was Turkan Saydal?

Dermatologist, Turkan Saydal died on Monday, May 18, 2005, age 73. "One of the first women to work as a dermatologist in Turkey, Dr. Saylan became active in the fight against leprosy in the 1970s, founding the Turkish Leprosy Relief Association. Later, she was a consultant to the World Health Organization on leprosy and a founding member of the International Leprosy Union." NY Times

Her obituary appeared in the NY Times this week. "Far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife/ [her] sober wishes never learned to stray." It makes us proud to have had her in our midst. It makes us sad that we did not know about her and her work.

Perhaps, a Turkish colleague can add a few words.

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Tan by Needle?

Hans Reuchlin, a friend with Type I/II skin, alerted us to a recent letter in the BMJ which draws attention to the unlicensed use of melanotrophic peptides for recreational tanning: "Change in moles linked to use of unlicensed "sun tan jab"

The letter describes two women who were also sunbed users who presented with "rapidly pigmenting naevi and intense tan. Both patients had also subcutaneously injected Melanotan I and II obtained for self administration from the internet shortly before their moles changed."

Some of these products are purported to have aphrodisiac and positive erectile effects which will add to their illicit use one suspects. This is an emerging story. Stay tuned.

It reminds one of the book, Black Like Me by John Howard Griffith. The urban legend that Griffith died of melanoma is apparently erroneous.

Witness to History by Brenda Dintiman

We had mixed feelings about dealing with the crowds and cold to go and witness the swearing in of the president. Yet, our friends, Caroline and Charles, were visiting from North Carolina and they were determined to be there. I wasn't sure if Teddy would want to go but as Caroline said, "This is historic and he needs to be there with you." It was the first election that my daughter, Christine had voted in and the first time in my life that I felt passionate about voting.

We rode on the crowded Metro and became anxious as the announcer told us which stops were closed or overwhelmed with crowds. People tried to push on to the already full train as we got close to the Clarendon and Rosslyn Station and that was a little scary. They were affable and festive, however, singing and talking to each other and full of excitement. We got off four stops before the Capitol and were resigned to just be near a JumboTron screen to watch. We walked with thousands of people peacefully down 18th Street to the reflecting pool and then to the Washington monument. College kids were carrying signs; parents were walking with children and whole families were excitedly strolling together.

As we looked down the mall past the first JumboTron over the sea of people waving flags and saw the Capitol at the end, we felt emotional anticipating what was about to happen. For me it was a significant historic moment since I grew up in Richmond, Virginia the capital of the Confederacy and we were about to watch the swearing in of our first African-American president. We felt proud to witness the "peaceful transition of power" that makes our country unique.

People cheered and clapped for President Obama. I felt that this was a sign that regardless of one’s heritage and ethnic background our country gives us all opportunities to succeed and even become the President of the United States.

Unfortunately, some people booed ex-president Bush which offended us since regardless of one’s political beliefs he had served our country for eight years. Yet again, this symbolizes our country's freedom of speech.

I am happy that we braved the crowds and am still in awe of witnessing this historic event. The joyous energy of the crowds has given me a renewed faith in our country's ability to heal and to recover from these difficult economic times.

Brenda Dintiman is a dermatologist in Northern Virginia. She is the founder of Fair Oaks Skin Care Center in Fairfax, Virginia. You can reach her at: Email.