Epidemiological study of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Eghlid County (Fars province) during the years 2013-2017

Background: Leishmaniasis is one of the most important and most common endemic diseases of Iran and the second important parasitic disease transmitted by arthropods after malaria. There are two forms in Iran. The urban (dry) form that is caused by Leishmania tropica and its main vector is Phlebotomus sergenti and its reservoirs are human and dog. The other is the rural (wet) form which is caused by Leishmania major, its main vector is Phlebotomus papatasi and its reservoir is wild rodents. Various factors affect the incidence of leishmaniasis, including climate change, vegetation, gender and occupation.Objective: the frequency and epidemiological characteristics of cutaneous leishmaniasis was evaluated in Eghlid County.Materials and Methods: The present study is a descriptive study on epidemiology of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Eghlid County during 2013-17 in which a total of 102 cases were referred to the communicable diseases unit of main health center. The data of referrals were recorded then statistical indices were calculated using SPSS software.Results In this study, 73.5% of the study population were men and 26.5% were women. The age of patients ranged from 2 years to 70 years old. The highest number was in the age group of 20-29 years, which included 32.2% of patients. Most of the illnesses belonged to housewives and the least to farmers, military, and unemployed people. The highest number of ulcers were seen in the hand 38 (37.3) and in the foot 20 (19.6). The incidence in fall season (46.1) was also higher than the other seasons.Conclusion: According to the results of this study, it seems that Eqhlid County is not a natural focus of cutaneous leishmaniasis so it is necessary to take preventive measures such as health education, control of reservoirs and modify the environment in order to prevent from becoming a high risk area.

کلیدواژه ها:

Epidemiology ، Cutaneous Leishmaniasis ، Phlebotomus ، Eghlid