1/46. Cutaneous leishmaniasis following local trauma: a clinical pearl. Cutaneous leishmaniasis is acquired from the bite of an infected sand fly and can result in chronic skin lesions that develop within weeks to months after a bite. Local trauma has been implicated as a precipitating event in the development of skin lesions in patients who have been infected with Leishmania species. Here we report a case series and review the literature on patients who developed cutaneous leishmaniasis after local trauma, which may familiarize clinicians with this presentation. ( info) |
2/46. Mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in a patient with the human immunodeficiency virus. We report a case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis (MCL) in a patient with the human immunodeficiency virus (hiv), Centers for disease Control (CDC) Stage A2, with no previous history of cutaneous or systemic leishmaniasis. The patient had not travelled outside the province of Malaga, on the Mediterranean coast of southern spain, so that it concerns an indigenous case, extremely unusual in this area. The hiv infection may well have influenced the defence against leishmania, but the exact mechanism by which this occurred is unknown. ( info) |
| A case of mococutaneous leishmaniasis in a patient referred to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, with a presumptive diagnosis of lethal mid-line granuloma is described. The patient had lived in bolivia and had been treated with antimony during and after which his mucosal lesions progressed. These lesions completely healed with 971 mg of amphotericin b. Mucocutaneous leishmaniasis is endemic in many areas of Central and south america and may occur in patients in the united states who have lived in or traveled to these areas. Organisms may be difficult to identify, and multiple biopsies and cultures may be necessary. The use of amphotericin b for the treatment of leishmaniasis is reviewed. It is an effective alternative to antimony therapy, and in some cases resistant to antimony, it may be the drug of choice. ( info) |
4/46. Successful use of a defined antigen/GM-CSF adjuvant vaccine to treat mucosal leishmaniasis refractory to antimony: A case report. immunotherapy has been proposed as a method to treat mucosal leishmaniasis for many years, but the approach has been hampered by poor definition and variability of antigens used, and results have been inconclusive. We report here a case of antimonial-refractory mucosal leishmaniasis in a 45 year old male who was treated with three single injections (one per month) with a cocktail of four Leishmania recombinant antigens selected after documented hypo-responsiveness of the patient to these antigens, plus 50 microg of GM-CSF as vaccine adjuvant. Three months after treatment, all lesions had resolved completely and the patient remains without relapse after two years. Side effects of the treatment included only moderate erythema and induration at the injection site after the second and third injections. We conclude that carefully selected microbial antigens and cytokine adjuvant can be successful as immunotherapy for patients with antimonial-refractory mucosal leishmaniasis. ( info) |
5/46. A case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis. leishmaniasis is prevalent in most warm-climate areas of the world. We describe a long-undiagnosed case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in italy that might have been contracted in costa rica. The patient's signs and symptoms included granulomatous-like lesions on the forehead and legs, nasal obstruction accompanied by serous and crusted rhinorrhea, and diffuse granulomatous-like lesions in the septum and turbinates. The patient was treated with three on-off cycles of itraconazole. At the 1-year follow-up, all his lesions had nearly disappeared. ( info) |
6/46. Autochthonous mucosal leishmaniasis in a hemodialyzed Italian patient. A case of mucosal leishmaniasis in a 60-year old hemodialysis patient who had never lived outside italy is described. The patient complained of fever, epistaxis and nasal obstruction. An anterior rhinoscopy disclosed a mass of two centimetres in diameter in the right nasal fossa. Histological examination revealed Leishmania amastigotes. serology for Leishmania was positive with antibody titer of 1/320. A culture yielded a very slow growth of leishmania infantum MON-24. In spite of a two-month treatment with oral itraconazole, the lesions progressively worsened. Treatment with topical paromomycin sulfate determined the complete resolution of the lesions within four months, with a residual perforation of the septum. This case demonstrates that localization of Leishmania spp must be considered in the differential diagnosis of mucosal lesions in hemodialyzed patients, even in countries not at risk for this parasite. Moreover, this case indicates the important role of the immune system in the evolution of the disease. ( info) |
7/46. Oral leishmaniasis in a hiv-positive patient. Report of a case involving the palate. leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease caused by a protozoon (Leishmania), with different clinical forms that are endemic in certain countries. The association of this disease in patients who are seropositive to human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) has recently been described. leishmaniasis can develop in any stage of hiv infection, although the clinical manifestations - and hence the diagnosis - tend to coincide with the periods of maximum immune depression. We present the case of a hiv-positive, ex-intravenous drug abuser (in stage B2 of the CDC, 1992) with concomitant hepatitis c infection who presented with palatinal pain and bleeding for the past 2 months. Exploration revealed a vegetating tumoration of the hard palate. hematoxylin-eosin and Giemsa staining of the biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of leishmaniasis. The definitive diagnosis was mucocutaneous leishmaniasis (MCL), for a bone marrow aspirate proved negative, and no further lesions could be established. The patient was treated with meglumine antimoniate (Glucantime), followed by improvement of the lesions. ( info) |
8/46. leishmaniasis in the genital area. Two patients from the gold mines of Bolivar State, venezuela, presenting cutaneous leishmaniasis in the genital region, an unusual location, are described. The first patient showed an ulcerated lesion of the glans penis. Leishmanin skin test was positive. A biopsy specimen revealed a granulomatous infiltrate containing Leishmania parasites. In the second patient, Leishmanin skin test was positive, hiv and VDRL were negative. Leishmania parasites were present in a biopsy of an ulcerated lesion in the scrotum, with an indurated base, infiltrative borders with an yellowish exudate. patients were treated with meglumine antimoniate and the lesions healed. ( info) |
| A 69 year old man living in spain contracted mucocutaneous leishmaniasis involving the nose. The infecting organism was leishmania infantum, which only rarely causes the New World form of the disease. The source of infection was probably a neighbour's dog. The patient began treatment with liposomal amphotericin b but died of pneumonia two months later. ( info) |
| A case of a patient, presenting with a granulomatous lesion of the anterior nasal septum mucosa spreading to the columella and the nasal floor, whereby leishmaniasis was diagnosed, is presented. The clinical and pathological aspects of this pathology, its diagnosis and treatment are reviewed. ( info) |