Abstract: Objective: To investigate the epidemiological situation of leprosy in Shaanxi Province from 1998 to 2018. Methods:The data of new and recurrent leprosy patients in Shaanxi from 1998 to 2018 were collected through the National Leprosy Management Information System (LEPMIS).  The related factors such as annual detection rate, annual prevalence rate and so on were analyzed by χ2 test of SPSS 19.0 software. Results: A total of 542 new and recurrent leprosy patients were found in Shaanxi from 1998 to 2018. The average annual detection rate declined from 0.092/105 in 1998 to 0.029/105 in 2018, and the average annual prevalence rate declined from 10.309/105 to 0.134/105, showing a downward trend. Of 477 new leprosy patients, 2 were 14-year-old children, 31% was grade 2 disability. The average delay in diagnosis of new cases decreased by 25.63% from 1998 (47.6 months) to 2018 (64 months). Conclusion: The prevalence of leprosy in Shaanxi was generally declining, but with a high level 2 disability ratio and the cases occur in children. Early diagnosis and treatment of leprosy need to be continued to strengthen in order to shorten diagnostic  delay of and reduce the disability ratio.

Key words: Shaanxi Province, leprosy, epidemiology