How did Baldwin IV, king of Jerusalem got leprosy?
I mean he was a noble and later a king, didn't leprosy happened in places with high insalubrity?
I mean he was a noble and later a king, didn't leprosy happened in places with high insalubrity?
?
Favorite Answer
Mycobacterium leprae, like it's close cousin, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (yes they are literally close cousins) are probably the toughest bacterium on the planet to kill. As such the Leprosy bacterium can literally be any where any time. The greatest chance of getting it is from some one who has it, but like Tuberculosis the bacterium can lay dormant in a human body for years and never affect them.
Anonymous
It can happen to anyone, at any time, anywhere. Though rare today, it still happens, and there's a Leprosarium still in operation in Carville, Louisiana.