A Hospital Based Retrospective Study of Post Kala-Azar Dermal Leishmaniasis (PKDL) Cases

ABSTRACT

Post Kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) is a cutaneous form of leishmaniasis and usually occurs one to several years after apparent cure of visceral leishmaniasis (VL). Methods: The present work was designed as a retrospective tertiary urban hospital based, observational, clinico-epidemiological study during the period from February 2018 to January 2019. Results: A total of 24 PKDL patients, 16 males (66.66%) and 8 females (33.34%) were included in the study. The age of the patients ranged from 8 years to 56 years (mean age 30.6 years). Lesions in most of our patients (n=21, 87.50%) were located on the face, including the lip and nose. Most of our patients (n=20, 83.33%) were nodular (non-ulcerative), while two (08.33%) had nodulo ulcerative lesions and one (04.16%) had macular lesions. In the present study, 91.66.47 % (n = 22) of PKDL patients reported history of VL. The median time of manifestation of PKDL after VL treatment were 32 months (range = 5–286 months). Majority (n=20) of cases with history of VL had been treated with amphotericin B while the remaining (n=4,) had been treated with sodium stibogluconate. Conclusion: The present study highlights occurrence of PKDL in endemic area.Further epidemiological studies are required for identification of vector and strain of Leishmania involved.