ABSTRACT
In 2001 a visceral leishmaniasis (VL) surveillance system was set up for children aged < or = 12 years in the primary health system in Meshkin-Shahr district of Ardebil province, north-western Islamic Republic of Iran. All cases with clinical signs and symptoms of VL and positive by the direct agglutination test were referred for physical examination and treatment. The mean annual incidence of VL decreased significantly from 1.88 before (1985-2000) to 0.77 per 1000 child population after the intervention (2001-07). In a control area with no surveillance, it increased from 0.11 to 0.23 per 1000. Early detection of VL using practical serological tests and timely treatment of cases could decrease the mortality and morbidity rates of VL in endemic areas.
Subject(s)
Child Health Services/organization & administration , Leishmaniasis, Visceral , Population Surveillance/methods , Primary Health Care/organization & administration , Referral and Consultation/organization & administration , Agglutination Tests , Chi-Square Distribution , Child , Disease Notification/methods , Endemic Diseases/prevention & control , Endemic Diseases/statistics & numerical data , Humans , Incidence , Iran/epidemiology , Leishmaniasis, Visceral/diagnosis , Leishmaniasis, Visceral/drug therapy , Leishmaniasis, Visceral/epidemiology , Longitudinal Studies , Mass Screening/organization & administration , Program EvaluationABSTRACT
In 2001 a visceral leishmaniasis (VL) surveillance system was set up for children aged ≤ 12 years inthe primary health system in Meshkin-Shahr district of Ardebil province, north-western Islamic Republic ofIran. All cases with clinical signs and symptoms of VL and positive by the direct agglutination test were referredfor physical examination and treatment. The mean annual incidence of VL decreased significantly from 1.88before (1985–2000) to 0.77 per 1000 child population after the intervention (2001–07). In a control area with nosurveillance, it increased from 0.11 to 0.23 per 1000. Early detection of VL using practical serological tests andtimely treatment of cases could decrease the mortality and morbidity rates of VL in endemic areas
En 2001, un système de surveillance de la leishmaniose viscérale a été mis en place pour les enfants âgésde 0 à 12 ans dans le système de santé primaire du district de Meshkin-Shahr, province d’Ardebil, nord-ouest dela République islamique d’Iran. Tous les cas présentant des signes cliniques et des symptômes de leishmanioseviscérale ainsi qu’une réaction positive au test d’agglutination directe étaient orientés en vue d’un examen physiqueet d’un traitement. L’incidence annuelle moyenne de la leishmaniose viscérale a nettement diminué, passant de1,88 avant l’intervention (1985-2000) à 0,77 pour 1 000 enfants après l’intervention (2001-2006). Elle a augmentédans une zone témoin sans surveillance, passant de 0,11 à 0,23 pour 1 000 enfants. Un dépistage précoce dela leishmaniose viscérale à l’aide de tests sérologiques pratiques et une prise en charge rapide des cas permettraientde réduire les taux de mortalité et de morbidité de la leishmaniose viscérale dans les zones endémiques
Subject(s)
Population Surveillance , Incidence , Leishmaniasis, Visceral , Primary Health CareABSTRACT
Zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis, primarily an infection of desert rodents, is an important endemic disease in some parts of Iran. In spite of reporting Leishmania infection in Nesokia indica microscopically, its role remains unclear in Iran. We report the first natural infection by Leishmania turanica in a wild-caught N. indica in the west part of Iran, near the border with Iraq. The evidence is in the form of PCR-RFLP testing based on internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) rDNA with HaeIII enzyme and ITS1 sequence analysis. This isolate was highly pathogenic in BALB/c mice and golden hamsters and caused lethal systemic infection in the former.
Subject(s)
Leishmania/genetics , Animals , Cricetinae , DNA, Recombinant/genetics , Iran , Leishmania/isolation & purification , Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous/parasitology , Mesocricetus , Mice , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Molecular Sequence Data , Polymerase Chain Reaction , Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length , Rats , Sequence Analysis, DNA , Species SpecificityABSTRACT
Using direct agglutination tests, a survey of visceral leishmaniasis was carried out among children and adults from 13 villages and from nomadic tribes in Bushehr province during 1998-99. Of the 1496 plasma samples, the overall seropositive rate [titres > or = 1:3200] was 3.4%. Almost all cases [94.1%] were in children under 10 years old. Eighteen patients were diagnosed with kala azar; fever and splenomegaly were the predominant signs and symptoms. Parasitology and serology examinations of local animals identified dogs and jackals infected with Leishmania infantum. Suggestions for control of visceral leishmaniasis in this area are to eliminate stray dogs, identify cases among humans and suspected leashed dogs, and treat infected individuals
Subject(s)
Age Distribution , Antibodies, Protozoan , Child, Preschool , Disease Reservoirs , Dog Diseases , Fever , Leishmania donovani , Seroepidemiologic Studies , Splenomegaly , Zoonoses , Leishmaniasis, VisceralABSTRACT
In Iran, microscopic examination of skin scrapings from 2202 individuals with clinically diagnosed cutanesous leishmaniasis (CL) lesions revealed the presence of amastigotes in 1123 cases (51.0 percent)
Bacteriological examinations of the lesions indicated that 788 individuals (35.7 percent) were also infected with one or more pathogenic bacteria, including coagulase-positive staphylococci (27.8 percent), betahaemolytic streptococci (10.6 percent), and other opportunist pathogenic bacteria (total 2.5 percent)
The prevalence of bacterial infections in lesions in which leishmania parasites were detected was 26.5 percent, while for lesions in which no parasite was found the prevalence of such infections was significantly greater (45 percent)
The results of this study show that bacterial infections should be considered in diagnosing and treating suspected CL lesions, particularly in areas where there is no facility for carrying out bacteriological examinations. Erythromycin can be used to treat the bacterial infections of the purulent sores
