Unusual clinical variants of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Pakistan

• Published in: British journal of dermatology (1951) Vol. 139; no. 1; pp. 111 - 113
• Main Authors: Raja, Khalid M., Khan, Hameed, Ber Rahman
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford BSL Blackwell Science Ltd 01.07.1998; Blackwell; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Adolescent; Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Facial Dermatoses - pathology; Foot Dermatoses - pathology; Hand Dermatoses - pathology; Human protozoal diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous - pathology; Leshmaniasis; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Parasitic diseases; Penile Diseases - pathology; Protozoal diseases; Tropical medicine; Asia; Pakistan; Parasitological investigation; Human; Skin disease; Protozoal disease; Process variant; Parasitosis; Leishmaniasis; Differential diagnostic; Infection; Pathology; Microbiological investigation; Atypical; Clinical investigation; Skin; Diagnosis
• ISSN: 0007-0963; 1365-2133
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2133.1998.02325.x

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is endemic in the Baluchistan province of Pakistan and poses a great risk to non‐immune visitors to the area. The wide spectrum of clinical variants of this common disease is at times a diagnostic challenge. A total of 1709 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis were recorded over a 1‐year period. In 37 (2%) patients the lesions were very unusual, and therefore worth reporting. These included acute paronychial, chancriform, annular, palmoplantar, zosteriform and erysipeloid forms. The zosteriform and erysipeloid forms have rarely been reported previously, but to the best of our knowledge, acute paronychial, chancriform, annular and palmoplantar lesions are being reported for the first time. The morphologically unusual lesions may be attributed to an altered host response or involvement of an atypical strain of parasite in these lesions.