Gerhard Armauer Hansen that the leprosy acts of 1877 and 1885 were passed, leading to a steady decline of the disease in Norway from 1,800 known cases in 1875 to just 575 cases in 1901. His distinguished work was recognized at the International Leprosy Congress held at Bergen in 1909. Hansen had suffered from syphilis since the 1860s but died of heart disease. He was an atheist. Gerhard Armauer Hansen Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen (29 July 1841 – 12 February 1912) was a Norwegian physician, remembered for his identification of the bacterium "Mycobacterium leprae" in 1873 as the causative agent of leprosy. Hansen
Complication (medicine) Complication (medicine) Complication, in medicine, is an unfavorable evolution or consequence of a disease, a health condition or a therapy. The disease can become worse in its severity or show a higher number of signs, symptoms or new pathological changes, become widespread throughout the body or affect other organ systems. A new disease may also appear as a complication to a previous existing disease. A medical treatment, such as drugs or surgery may produce adverse effects or produce new health problem(s) by itself. Therefore, a complication may be iatrogenic (i.e. literally "brought forth by the physician"). Medical knowledge about a