Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Al-Jabal Al-Gharbi, Libya: Incidence and Epidemiology

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the epidemiological aspects of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in patients who were presented to dermatology clinic of main referral hospital in Al-Harab, Al-Jabal Al-Gharbi, and to assess its distribution in relation to age, sex, season, and residency. In this case series study, all patients with CL, who were referred or presented to dermatology outpatient clinic of Al-Haraba Hospital in the period from Aug to Dec 2019, were enrolled, and were clinically examined. Slit skin smear and/or skin biopsy for microscopic confirmation were performed whenever the diagnosis was suspicious. The information about age, gender, address of patient, date of presentation, and the number of ulcers were collected and analyzed using SPSS. About 110 patients were found to have CL, majority of them 67(60.9%) were females, while 43(39.1%) were males. The ages of patients were ranged from (1 to 84 years). The current findings reported marked increase of cases of CL in December especially in Al-Haraba district compared to other months. Further studies are required to recognize the vector, parasite species and the animal reservoir, which would enable national and local health authorities, in order to implement an effective control program.