The Effect of Local Allergic Reaction to Intralesional Glucantime on Recovery Course of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis

Systemic or intralesional injection of Glucantime in treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis, sometimes leads to a local allergic reaction. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of local allergic reaction to intralesional Glucantime on recovery course of cutaneous leishmaniasis.

In a retrospective cross-sectional study, the data of patient records of cases with cutaneous leishmaniasis, who underwent local treatment with Glucantime in Imam Reza dermatology clinic, Mashhad, Iran, from March 2006 to March 2011, were evaluated. All cases that showed a localized allergic reaction to Glucantime were selected as the case group and the cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis without any allergic reaction to treatment were selected as control group. Patients were evaluated in subsequent follow-up periods for improvement after Glucantime injection.

The mean number of injections needed for complete recovery was 6.54± 3.76 in patients with topical allergic reaction and 9.77 ± 5.14 in control group; there was a statistically significant difference between two groups (P = 0.002). The time to complete recovery in patients with topical allergic reaction to Glucantime was insignificantly shorter.

This study showed that patients with local allergic reaction to Glucantime require fewer numbers of injections to achieve complete recovery than non-allergic patients