A SECOND man has been diagnosed with leprosy in the north east of the country, health officials have confirmed.

It follows the recent revelations that a Brazilian man was found to have the same disease after he complained to GPs in Co Meath of shooting pains. The latest case, diagnosed in June, is also believed to involve a foreign national but no details about the man's age or state of health have been released.

However, the man is suffering a recurrence of the disease and it is understood he contracted it in another country.

Irish people are familiar with images of people suffering disfigurement of the limbs due to the effects of leprosy in poverty-stricken countries.

But leprosy, which mainly affects the skin, is not a killer and can easily be cured today. In countries where proper medical care is scarce it can lead to damaged nerves if left untreated. The patient is likely to have to go on a course of antibiotics.

Doctors say it does not pose a public health risk in a country like Ireland and there is no threat to other people. Around 95pc of people have natural immunity to leprosy.

It is transmitted via droplets from the nose and mouth during close and frequent contact with untreated cases.

The previous case involved a 37-year-old Brazilian man working in Ireland. He sought treatment in January for pains and an itchy rash at the Medical Centre in Abbey Road in Navan, Co Meath.

Dr Connor Gallagher, a GP at the practice, examined the patient and found the rash had spread around his lower abdomen and trunk.

When questioned if he had ever experienced anything like it before, he revealed he had been treated for a similar problem 10 years ago while living in Brazil. The patient was unsure of the English term for the condition and wrote "Hanseniase", which directly translates as "leprosy".

Leprosy has a long incubation period of up to seven years and doctors decided it needed to be investigated further and referred him to the infectious diseases unit of St James's Hospital, Dublin.

Irish Independent