Restoration of plantar sweat secretion in the feet of leprosy patients.

ABSTRACT

As part of the studies on nerve damage and its consequences in leprosy, the status of sweat gland function in the anaesthetic sole of the feet of leprosy patients was investigated qualitatively and semi-quantitatively, before and after surgical decompression of the posterior tibial neurovascular bundle. Sweat prints of the feet of the patients were obtained pre-operatively and postoperatively on Whatman's No. 1 filter paper. The paper was treated with one percent Ninhydrin and the intensities of the Ninhydrin positive areas were quantitated. Forty one feet of thirty six patients have been studied in this manner. Sweat print analysis of twenty normal people have also been done, and included for comparison. This operative procedure has been found to effect an improvement in the sweat gland function in the feet of more than fifty percent of leprosy patients studied so far.