A fourteen-year retrospective of clinic-epidemiological aspects of cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis in Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe clinic-epidemiological characteristics of leishmaniasis cases attended at the Clinical Hospital of Federal University of Uberlândia (CHU), state of Minas Gerais, from January 2000 to December 2013. This is a descriptive and retrospective review of medical records of patients diagnosed with leishmaniasis and treated at the CHU. 168 cases of leishmaniasis were analyzed and most patients were male, aged 23 to 60 years. For cutaneous and mucosal leishmaniasis, single lesions, located mainly in lower limbs and head (CL) and nasal mucosa (ML), were the most common clinical presentation. Regarding the diagnosis, the most performed methods for CL and ML were biopsy plus histopathology and biopsy plus immunohistochemistry; biopsy plus direct parasitological examination methods were the most frequent for VL. Most patients (84%) received treatment, mainly glucantime for both CL and ML; VL treatment was based on amphotericin B or glucantime. According to data from Sistema de Informações de Agravos de Notificação (SINAN), the Brazilian information system to notify and investigate cases of diseases and their aggravations, no case has been confirmed as autochthonous. It is noteworthy the underreporting of cases and the lack of complete information in medical records. Our results may contribute to a better understanding of the real situation in Uberlândia region concerning to leishmaniasis.