Epidemiological Study of an Outbreak of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Five Endemic Foci, Yazd Province, Iran March 2015–March 2016

Introduction: Iran is majorly affected by the Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL). Despite continued efforts toward control, the incidence of CL has increased in the many areas of Iran. The counties of Ardakan, Khatam, Bafgh, Abarkuh, and Yazd are endemic places for CL. An outbreak occurred in the Yazd province them between March 2015 and March 2016.The aim of this paper was to identify the epidemiological and clinical aspects of leishmaniasis in patients that were reported from these five endemic foci during the outbreak. Methods: This descriptive study was conducted on 150 patients suffering from CL who were referred to the provincial health center during the period of outbreak. Clinical and demographic information of the patients were registered and analyzed by the SPSS 23 software. Results: From the 150 cases considered, 121 subjects (80.2%) lived in urban areas. 93 (62%) patients were male. The most frequent age group was 21–30 years old (18.7%). Housekeepers had the highest incidence (22.6%) of CL. 41.3% of patients had elementary education. Monthly family income in over half of the patients was less than a million tomans per month. The maximum number of CL cases was reported in the autumn with (62 patients; 41.3%). 98 (65.3%) patients reported a history of travel in the past year. The highest rates of CL lesions were seen in the feet (18.7%). In over half of the cases (52.7%), the wound size was over than one centimeter and 82 (54.7%) patients had only one wound. Conclusion: In order to further outbreak control, basic measures such as public education and education for people who travel to endemic areas as well as the treatment of patients infected with urban type leishmaniasis (as a reservoir), according to the geographical condition and carrier, can be useful.

کلیدواژه ها:

Epidemiology ، Disease outbreak ، Cutaneous Leishmaniasis ، Yazd