Ocular complications of leprosy in Cameroon

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the main ocular complications of leprosy in Cameroon. Patients and Methods: It is a prospective cross-sectional study which took place from July 1998 to January 1999 in five leprosaria in Cameroon. The ophthalmological examination of all patients was performed by the same team. Results: Of the 218 patients examined, 60.1% were males and 39.9% females. 72.5% had a paucibacillary leprosy and 27.5% a multibacillary form. 77.5% of patients had at least one ocular lesion and 38.3% of eyes had visual acuity ≤1/ 10. Madarosis and anterior uveitis were more frequent in multibacillary forms while lagophthalmos and cataract were so in paucibacillary forms. Conclusion: Ocular complications are frequent in leprosy in Cameroonians. It is a true public health problem and it is important to prevent these lesions by early diagnosis and adequate treatment.