Leishmaniasis, an infectious disease endemic in tropical, Asian and southern European countries, is caused by obligate intramacrophage protozoa and is transmitted through the bite of infected female sandflies. More than 20 leishmanial species are responsible for four main clinical syndromes: cutaneous leishmaniasis; mucocutaneous leishmaniasis; visceral leishmaniasis, also known as kala-azar, a...

Remote sensing and geographical information technologies were used to discriminate areas of high and low risk for contracting kala-azar or visceral leishmaniasis. Satellite data were digitally processed to generate maps of land cover and spectral indices, such as the normalised difference vegetation index and wetness index. To map estimated vector abundance and indoor climate data, local polyno...

Three patients who developed bilateral anterior uveitis at the end of, or soon after, the apparently successful treatment of visceral leishmaniasis are described. The uveitis gave rise to secondary glaucoma in 2 of the patients, and in the third patient the eye lesions were associated with an episode of post kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis.

Leishmania donovani is considered the causative organism of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL). Testing of 4/29 DNA samples from VL and PKDL patients as well as 2/7 field isolates showed an aberrant internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) pattern, which upon sequencing strongly matched Leptomonas seymouri, thus...

Indian kala-azar patients have normal numbers of peripheral blood NK cells but impaired functional activity due to decreased binding and lysis of target cells. This impairment of NK activity could not be corrected by exogenous recombinant human alpha or gamma interferon. However, recombinant human interleukin 2 was able to restore this activity by augmenting conjugate formation and lysis of tar...

Reported are the results of a study to determine the efficacy and safety of liposomal amphotericin B (AmBisome) for treating visceral leishmaniasis (kala-azar) in several developing countries where the disease is endemic (Brazil, India, and Kenya). At each study site, sequential cohorts of 10 patients each were treated with AmBisome at a dose of 2 mg.kg-1.day-1 (2 MKD). The first cohort receive...

The parasitic disease kala-azar (visceral leishmaniasis, VL) was first described in 1824 in Jessore district, Bengal (now Bangladesh). Epidemic peaks were recorded in Bengal in the 1820s, 1860s, 1920s, and 1940s. After achieving good control of the disease during the intensive vector control efforts for malaria in the 1950s-1960s, Bangladesh experienced a VL resurgence that has lasted to the pr...

To the Editor, "Indian Medical Gazette." Sir,?In the communication from Surgn.-Capt. P. W. O'Gorman in your issue for November regarding hda azar I see no mention of the fact of his having made use of the microscope in his search for anchylostomata. If, instead of straining the motion and examining them microscopically, he examines them microscopically according to the directions given by Sonsi...