[Assessment of the Mitsuda reaction in lepromatous patients inactive before and after immunotherapy]

Rev Soc Bras Med Trop. 1995 Jul-Sep;28(3):233-6. doi: 10.1590/s0037-86821995000300011.
[Article in Portuguese]

Abstract

In this study the immunopotentiator levamisole as well as a mixture of BCG/Mycobacterium leprae were investigated in inactive lepromatous leprosy patients by using the Mitsuda reaction as a parameter. Twenty lepromatous patients ten years ago classified as histologically negative for Mitsuda's test were divided into three groups: five patients that were only retested with Mitsuda antigen; eight patients that received oral levamisol and seven patients that received a mixture of alive BCG plus autoclaved M. leprae. The results indicated that: 1) the levamisole did not alter the reactivity to lepromin in any of the patients studied; 2) neither the changes in the reactivity to lepromin by using the mixture (3 cases) nor those that occurred spontaneously (3 cases) were clear. They properly reflected the natural variation of patients with some degree of resistance to Mycobacterium leprae.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Controlled Clinical Trial
  • English Abstract

MeSH terms

  • Adjuvants, Immunologic / therapeutic use*
  • BCG Vaccine / therapeutic use*
  • Bacterial Vaccines / therapeutic use
  • Humans
  • Immunotherapy*
  • Leprosy / immunology*
  • Leprosy / therapy
  • Levamisole / therapeutic use*
  • Mycobacterium leprae*

Substances

  • Adjuvants, Immunologic
  • BCG Vaccine
  • Bacterial Vaccines
  • Levamisole