The causative organism is from the family of bacteria which causes tuberculosis and leprosy. It destroys skin, underlying tissues and causes deformities. Lesions occur mainly in the limbs. Buruli ulcer is the third most common mycobacterial infection in healthy people after tuberculosis and leprosy and the most poorly understood of these three diseases. However, cases were described as early as 1897 in Uganda by Sir Albert Cook.
Most patients are women and children who live in rural areas near rivers or wetlands.
Not much is known about the mode of transmission to human beings. All countries along the Gulf of Guinea are now affected. In C te d'Ivoire, approximately 15,000 cases have been recorded since 1978 where up to 16 percent of the population in some villages are affected. There is evidence of huge under-reporting of the disease. It is found in marshy parts of the tropical and sub-tropical regions of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Western Pacific.