Older research suggested the skin as the main route of transmission, but recent research has increasingly favored the respiratory route.Leprosy is not sexually transmitted and is not spread through pregnancy to the unborn child. The majority (95%) of people who are exposed to M. leprae do not develop leprosy; casual contact such as shaking hands and sitting next to someone with leprosy does not lead to transmission. People are considered non-infectious 72 hours after starting appropriate multi-drug therapy.Two exit routes of M. leprae from the human body often described are the skin and the nasal mucosa, although their relative importance is not clear. Lepromatous cases show large numbers of organisms deep in the dermis, but whether they reach the skin surface in sufficient numbers is doubtful.Leprosy may also be transmitted to humans by armadillos, although the mechanism is not fully understood. Genetics
Not all people who are infected or exposed to M. leprae develop leprosy, and genetic factors are suspected to play a role in susceptibility to an infection. Cases of leprosy often cluster in families and several genetic variants have been identified. In many people who are exposed, the immune system is able to eliminate the leprosy bacteria during the early infection stage before severe symptoms develop. A genetic defect in cell-mediated immunity may cause a person to be susceptible to develop leprosy symptoms after exposure to the bacteria.
Adverse effects
"Any foreign object in the body carries an infection risk, and a catheter can serve as a superhighway for bacteria to enter the bloodstream or body", according to Milisa Manojlovich, a professor at the University of Michigan School of Nursing.Catheters can be difficult to clean, and therefore harbor antibiotic resistant or otherwise pathogenic bacteria. See also
Cannula
Foley catheter
French catheter scale
Gastrostomy
G-Tube
Jejunostomy
Stent

References

Millward, Steven F. (September 2000). "Percutaneous Nephrostomy: A Practical Approach". Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology. 11 (8): 955–964. doi:10.1016/S1051-0443(07)61322-0. PMID 10997456. == External links ==