How Is Social Stigma Created in Disease States?
As rightly pointed out by Peter J. Hotez in his recent editorial in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, some of the so-called neglected tropical diseases not only cause “health and economic” effects but also result in “horrific social stigma” [13]. Although the morbidity associated with CL is not significant, and the disease is not lethal, the disfigurement and resulting social stigmatization may cause or precipitate psychological disorders, along with restricting social participation of the individuals affected by the disease. Thus CL, like other disfiguring diseases, not only affects the physical well-being of the individual but also significantly alters their psychological, social, and economic well-being [14]. A study conducted in five of the 14 districts of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, showed that many erroneous beliefs exist about CL, e.g., that “the disease can be transmitted by person-to-person physical contact” (of 360 respondents, the most common answers were “touching” [
