Leprosy (i.e., Hansen’s disease) is a chronic disease secondary to infection with either Mycobacterium leprae or M. lepromatosis. While the incidence of this disease is decreasing across the world, there is mounting evidence that it might be increasing, and becoming endemic, in the United States. Leprosy was once considered a potential threat to the blood supply, and while this threat has not borne out, it is worth revisiting the available data to assess whether it may pose a threat in the future. Herein, we discuss the evidence for and against the potential for transfusion-transmission of leprosy, and highlight future areas of research to further elucidate this possibility.

麻风病（即汉森氏病）是继发于麻风分枝杆菌或麻风分枝杆菌感染的慢性疾病。虽然这种疾病的发病率在世界范围内正在下降，但越来越多的证据表明，这种疾病可能正在增加，并在美国成为地方病。麻风病曾经被认为对血液供应构成潜在威胁，虽然这种威胁尚未得到证实，但值得重新审视现有数据以评估它是否可能在未来构成威胁。在此，我们讨论支持和反对麻风病输血传播潜力的证据，并强调未来的研究领域，以进一步阐明这种可能性。