Diffuse (Ethiopic) cutaneous leishmaniasis
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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[Epidemiology of diffuse (Ethiopian) cutaneous leishmaniasis
Natural foci are located in the forest area in the East (1500-2000 m above sea level): Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The main natural reservoirs of the causative agent are damans, and carriers - Ph. Longipes, places of excretion and days of which are caves, hollows of trees, human constructions, burrows of rodents, etc.
What causes diffuse (Ethiopic) cutaneous leishmaniasis?
The causative agent of this disease is L. Aephiopica, has a very limited distribution on the African continent (Kenya, Ethiopia) and causes a variety of symptoms of diffuse (Ethiopian) cutaneous leishmaniasis.
Symptoms of diffuse (Ethiopic) cutaneous leishmaniasis
Diffuse (Ethiopian) cutaneous leishmaniasis lasts for a long time (up to several years), without a tendency to spontaneous recovery. Infiltrative rashes on the skin are generalized, almost never ulcerate, but also do not resolve.
Symptoms of diffuse (Ethiopian) cutaneous leishmaniasis are similar to Central Asian zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis. Rare complications are lesions of the mucous nasal and pharynx and the development of diffuse cutaneous leishmaniasis. Lesions of the nose, mouth and pharynx are manifested by infiltrates, papules and multiple nodes on the face and upper limbs resembling the lepromatous form of leprosy. Lesions of the eyebrows and nose cause a picture of the "lion face".
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Treatment of diffuse (Ethiopic) cutaneous leishmaniasis
Treatment of diffuse (Ethiopian) cutaneous leishmaniosis is in most cases ineffective, but some patients are helped by the antimony preparation - pentamidine, as well as the antibiotic amphotericin B.