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Case Reports
. 2022 Mar 3;22(1):212.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-022-07169-w.

A trespasser from a foreign land? A case report of primary mucosal leishmaniasis

Yoram Fleissig  1   2 , Mary Dan-Gur  3   4 , Ayelet Michael-Gayego  3   5 , Alexander Maly  3   6 , Rami Tabib  7   8 , Charles L Jaffe  3   4 , Maya Korem  3   5
Affiliations
Case Reports

A trespasser from a foreign land? A case report of primary mucosal leishmaniasis

Yoram Fleissig et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: We report a clinically challenging and unusual case of L. donovani oral mucosal leishmaniasis.

Case presentation: Israeli resident with a former travel to central and North Africa, with no documented or prior cutaneous lesions presented with oral lesions of the maxillary gingiva and the upper lip. A delay in diagnosis and treatment have led to progression of the maxillary gingival lesions towards the hard palatal and the soft palate that could have potentially compromised the upper airway.

Conclusions: This case highlights the importance of early diagnosis of leishmaniasis in patients with oral lesions and the laboratory workup necessary to appropriately characterize and treat the disease.

Keywords: Case report; Leishmania donovani; Leishmaniasis; Mucosal.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Maxillary gingival hyperplasia and upper lip polypoid swelling and superficial ulcerations in its inner aspect (a). progression of the lesions and involvement of the palatal gingiva and hard palate, and ulcerations in the soft palate (b)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Histopathological examination of biopsy of oral lesion showing amastigotes forms of Leishmania within macrophages (arrow) in Hematoxilin-Eosin stained section (×600). Microscopy images were captured using Olympus BX51 light microscope, Olympus DP72 camera and Olympus cellSens imaging software
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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