A FIVE -YEAR SURVEY OF CUTANEOUS LEISHMANIASIS IN IRAN (2001-2006)

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is one of the most important zoonotic diseases in Iran. According to the reports of the Center for Disease Management and Control, among the 20,000 cases infected with various types of leishmaniasis annually, 80% are zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL). This descriptive and retrospective study was performed to determine the most recent status of ZCL in Iran, from 2001 to 2005. Data were collected from patients presenting to Primary Health Care Centers. Identification of the parasite was carried out by observation of amastigotes in direct smear after staining with Giemsa. The prevalence of infection in 2005 (29824) showed an increasing rate of 105.6% in comparison with 2001 (14050). In the last year of our study, the overall incidence rate per 100,000 was 30. Although among the 11 endemic provinces, the most cases were observed in Khorasan, Fars and Isfahan, respectively, the highest incidence rates were found in Yazd Province (203.2) in 2004 and Boshehr Province (139.6) in 2005. Surprisingly, during the past five years, the cases of ZCL have increased. This might be partly due to resettlement programs in countryside, reconstruction and destruction of the rodent vector’s habitats, the migration of infected persons from Afghanistan to the borderline provinces and relaxation of preventative measures.