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How was chaulmoogra oil used to treat leprosy before the 1940s?

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Sign reading Gandhiji Prem Nivas Leprosy Centre Titagarh conducted by Missionaries of Charity, with a crucifix above the sign on a decorated building facade. — leprosy The Gandhiji Prem Nivas is a center for people with leprosy that was established by Mother Teresa in 1958 and is run by the Missionaries of Charity in Titagarh, India.

Before the 1940s, chaulmoogra oil—derived from the seeds of trees in the genus Hydnocarpus—served as the primary medication for leprosy, despite its limited efficacy and significant drawbacks.12

Its application methods included:
* Local application: The oil was applied directly to affected skin areas, though this proved ineffective.1
* Oral administration: Patients ingested the oil, which frequently caused nausea.1
* Injection: The oil or its derivatives were administered via injection, a method that caused patients considerable pain.1

While its use was historically rooted in traditional medicine in India and China, it gained wider medical attention in the West after 1854. By the 1920s, it was the standard treatment, but its real value remained debated among authorities. It was eventually abandoned in the 1940s following the introduction of sulfone drugs, such as dapsone, which were significantly more effective at treating the disease.1