Visceral leishmaniasis: use of the polymerase chain reaction in an epidemiological study in Baringo district, Kenya

• Published in: Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Vol. 89; no. 5; pp. 492 - 495
• Main Authors: Schaefer, K.U., Schoone, G.J., Gachihi, G.S., Muller, A.S., Kager, P.A., Meredith, S.E.O.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.09.1995; Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Agglutination Tests; Animals; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; detection of parasite DNA; Disease Reservoirs; DNA, Protozoan - analysis; Female; Human protozoal diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; Kenya; Kenya - epidemiology; Leishmania donovani - genetics; leishmaniasis; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - epidemiology; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - parasitology; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - transmission; Leshmaniasis; Male; Medical sciences; Molecular Sequence Data; Parasitic diseases; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Protozoal diseases; Time Factors; Tropical medicine; visceral leishmaniasis; Kenya; Africa; leishmaniasis; Kenya; visceral leishmaniasis; polymerase chain reaction; detection of parasite DNA; Kinetoplastida; Human; Protozoa; Protozoal disease; Anemia; Leishmania donovani; Splenic disease; Hemopathy; Parasitosis; Leishmaniasis; Epidemiology; Lymphatic vessel disease; Infection; Polymerase chain reaction; Immunological investigation; Tropical medicine; Diagnosis
• ISSN: 0035-9203; 1878-3503
• DOI: 10.1016/0035-9203(95)90081-0

The polymerase chain reaction was applied to capillary blood spots dried on filter paper from 20 parasitologically proved cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL), 21 subclinical cases, and 11 healthy controls in a longitudinal study of anthroponotic VL in Baringo District, Kenya. Leishmania deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was detected 10·5 months before diagnosis and up to 3 years after diagnosis and apparently successful treatment. Subclinical cases can have detectable circulating parasite DNA in their blood. These findings may indicate that subclinical cases can be a reservoir and formerly treated VL patients can remain a reservoir for a long time. Xenodiagnosis should be performed on subclinical cases and former VL patients to establish their role in transmission of VL in Kenya.