Dapsone as monotherapy in cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis

ABSTRACT

There is a need for an oral, safe, effective, easily administered and cheap treatment for cutaneous and mucocutaneous leisimianiasis. Pentavalent antimonials remain the mainstay of treatment for cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmanjasis. We recruited 65 patients with leishmaniasis [52 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis and 13 patients with mucocutaneous leishmaniasis]. All studied patients were given dapsone treatment for 2 months. During the study period, 3 male patients [4.6%] stopped the treatment due to adverse reactions and excluded from the study. Of the studied 62 patients treated with dapsone, 57 patients [9 1.9%] [42 males and 15 females] were cured and 5 patients [8.1%] [4 males and one female] showed no response. Out of the studied 49 cases with cutaneous leishmaniasis, 45 cases [92, 3%] [33 male and 12 female] were cured; 4 [7, 7%>] [3 males and one female] showed no response and out of the 13 cases with mucocutaneous leishmaniasis, 12 cases [91.3%] [9 male and 3 female] were cured and one male [8.7%] showed no response. The results did not find any significant difference between the cure rate in both cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmanjasis. However the cure rate was showed significant differences with regard to age of the patients and the type of lesion among the cutaneous leishmaniasis cases. All cured patients were followed up for another two months with no relapse of cutaneous lesions