[Clinical findings of tegumentary leishmaniasis in children under five years of age in an endemic area of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis]

Abstract

A retrospective study was performed in a field clinic to characterize the clinical findings of tegumentary leishmaniasis in children from 0 to 5 years old. The clinical records of 4,464 patients were analyzed at the Primary Health Center of Corte de Pedra, Presidente Tancredo Neves, Bahia, Brazil, from May 1987 to December 1995. Four hundred and ninety one (11.8%) children were identified among 4,275 new cases of tegumentary leishmaniasis registered at this Unit. The gender ratio (M:F) for children under six years was 1.1:1. Cutaneous lesions predominated (98%), mainly skin ulcers (99%) located above the waist (p<0.05). Thirty five percent had multiple lesions. The observed magnitude of the disease in children, the similar proportion of cases in both genders and the location of the lesions suggest the possibility of peri or intradomiciliary transmission.