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View all search resultsFive Indonesians under medical watch for Leprosy in Romania
Five Indonesian migrant workers, including two who have tested positive for leprosy, are currently under observation by Romanian health authorities, the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta said on Monday, adding that its representatives are coordinating with local authorities to manage Europe’s first reported leprosy cases in four decades.
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An illustration of a purple ribbon which symbolizes World Leprosy Day, which is commemorated annually every last Sunday of January. (Shutterstock/Fabian Montano Hernandez)
F
ive Indonesian migrant workers, including two having tested positive for leprosy, are currently under observation by Romanian health authorities, the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta said on Monday, adding that its representatives are coordinating with local authorities to manage Europe’s first reported leprosy cases in four decades.
The two confirmed cases, Indonesians aged 21 and 25, are being treated in a hospital in the city of Cluj-Napoca, a six-hour drive from Bucharest, the ministry said. They are siblings of a leprosy patient in Indonesia.
One suspected case is being tested in the same hospital in Cluj-Napoca, while the two remaining suspected cases, the siblings’ close contacts, are currently in self-quarantine.
“The Indonesian Embassy in Bucharest has been in close communication with the five Indonesian citizens to ensure their condition and that they receive the necessary treatment,” ministry spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
“The embassy continues to coordinate with authorities in Romania to monitor the situation. [It] has also urged all Indonesian citizens to always take preventive measures, maintain their health and follow the advice of local health authorities,” Yvonne said.
Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, is a chronic bacterial disease that is curable using multidrug therapy, but can cause permanent disabilities if left untreated.
Long-unused international leprosy control protocols were activated in Romania last week after its Health Ministry announced the first confirmed infections detected in the Indonesian siblings, who previously sought treatment for skin lesions in the hospital in Cluj-Napoca. The ministry said that both patients are masseuses at a spa in the city, now temporarily closed pending the completion of an epidemiological investigation. Several other employees at the same spa are undergoing further testing.
