Fine needle aspiration cytology diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis in a 6-month-old child: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Skin biopsy and scrape smear examination are the two most commonly employed investigatory techniques in the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Although cases Leishmania lymphadenitis are reliably diagnosed with fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology, it has not attained popularity in the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis, and only a few reports are available. CASE: A 6-month-old Kuwaiti child presented with a skin lesion on her left forearm of five months' duration. Both scrape smears and FNA were performed from the lesion. FNA cytology smears showed a rich population of inflammatory cells predominating in lymphocytes and histiocytes and epithelioid cell granulomas. The amastigote forms of Leishmania were noted on the smears. The scrape smears were nondiagnostic. CONCLUSION: FNA cytology can be reliably used in the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis, especially in dry lesions, where scrape smears are likely to be nondiagnostic.