Carreta da Saúde takes information and medical assistance to fight leprosy in the municipalities of Rondônia / Rondônia Dynamics

<img src = "http : //www.rondoniadinamica.com/uploads/er739b8s90087wk.jpg "alt =" Carreta da Saúde takes information and care It started with the appearance of some spots on the back, which looked like a dermatological problem

Salatiel Pereira Viana gained leprosy and today helps others identify and fight the common disease

in the northern region and is popularly known as "white tissue". was identified by the father of Salatiel Pereira Viana, 19, a student in Nursing Techniques, "My father took me to the doctor and I was prescribed medication to see me," he recalls. "After a while, the spots stayed there, but I did not Be careful because it was hard to see. Then I noticed that they were appearing, too, in the pectoral area, that was a strange reddish spot and that it was swelling when I was sweating. We were worried and went to the doctor once again, I did the exams and it was checked that I was with leprosy, "reports.

The discovery of the disease dates back to May 2014, following a consultation at the Center of Medical Specialties (CEM) of Porto Velho, Salatiel discovered that he had multibacillary leprosy and started a drug treatment , a process that may be some patients: "Some patients react poorly to the drug and others quietly undergo treatment, as if nothing happened," says Adriani Castro, municipal coordinator of leprosy. But this was not the case with Salatiel. The boy recalled that he suffered a lot, even with minimal exposure to the sun, "the skin irritated, they formed blisters, sometimes they became painful, they developed crusts when they healed," says he. But the young man was determined to overcome the disease and to adopt a positive attitude: "I was never ashamed to say that I had leprosy and I always made people understand that I was 39 was on medication, so there was no risk of contagion. I've studied leprosy and I'm never touched by the disease, "he says.

The statement of Salatiel makes Adriani remember a very important point for those who follow a treatment against leprosy: "never stop taking drugs." Even if there are patients who are more sensitive to the drug, they are essential to healing, "he says.

Salatiel is part of a number of patients who lived almost invisibly with the disease, because leprosy manifests subtly, if the person does not observe with criterion, the stain, which indicates the presence of the disease, may go unnoticed. "The spot may be whitish, or brown or reddish pieces.There are cases that the person confuses with the white tissue or ringworm," informs Helen Carioca, Leprosy Status Coordinator. One of the main symptoms, which differentiates from fungal infection is the loss of sensitivity to the spot's location, "he advises.

Concerned about a brown spot on the back, Ananias Cardoso, 33, consulted a doctor at the Carretera de Saúde Lepenesiase, stationed on Wednesday 04 in the socialist district, in the eastern part of Porto Velho. "I was worried because I heard that it caused numbness and that I also felt this symptom," he reports. Ananias pbaded the screening and waited for sputum smear examination performed by mobile unit technicians, when the patient has spots on the body. "The clinic is taken care of, the patient goes through the screening and when it is needed, the bacilloscopy is done," says Vilson Lopes, biochemist. The cases of Leprosy Health Care were performed on days 03 and 04 in the East Zone and in the region five cases of leprosy were diagnosed.

Residents of the eastern area attended the invitation to the medical service offered in leprosy Carretera de Saúde, during two days of consultations, more than 200 residents received care. And they are right. The record of the disease is high in Brazil, which is the second country in the world with the highest rate of disease, loses only in India in statistics. Rondônia occupies the 6th position in the ranking of the disease, last year 517 cases were confirmed in the state, this year only, until June 30 was 222 confirmed cases, 11 in people under 15 years old.

Dermatologist Maria Kátia Gomes explains that the transmission of leprosy is by air, by the exposure of small droplets of saliva, but the contagion usually occurs by the long-term life with a person who does not treat disease. "Every 100 people, 10 develop the disease," he says.

The cart for sanitary leprosy is made available by the Novartis Foundation, in partnership with the State Government and the Ministry of Health, the Traveling Unit has five offices, A laboratory and badistance. . One of the objectives of this action is to decentralize the management of reference units and approach the community, while training teams of basic health units to early recognition of the disease. During the two days of care in the socialist district, for example, we diagnosed five cases at the initial stage of the disease which, if it was not detected, could be diagnosed in a few years, in a much longer phase. serious, "says Maria Kátia.

Salatiel Pereira Viana did the treatment persistently and followed a medical follow-up for about two years, was in the comings and goings to practices that discovered that he was destined to act in the field of health, today he helps others to heal themselves. this and other diseases. In Carreta leprosy of Saúde, he worked alongside other public service professionals who sought information and help to combat the symptoms of leprosy, a centuries-old disease that still touches thousands of people around the world.

Carreta's actions will continue in Porto Velho, with visits to the district of Castanheira, in the South zone, on 05/07, from 8am to 5pm, and at the Rio Madeira Palace on the morning of 06/07. Actions will continue in 17 other municipalities in Rondônia. The board of Helen Carioca, Leprosy State Coordinator is: "with imperfections or without imperfections, attend the leprosy route, the days of care, to get more information, and thus help others identify and fight the disease. " .

Author / Source: Mineia Capistrano / Secom