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Treatment of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis by Direct Current Electrotherapy: The Baghdadin Device
Author(s) -
Sharquie Khalifa E.,
AlHamamy Hayder,
ElYassin Dhafir
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
the journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1346-8138
pISSN - 0385-2407
DOI - 10.1111/j.1346-8138.1998.tb02387.x
Subject(s) - electrotherapy , cutaneous leishmaniasis , medicine , current (fluid) , dermatology , leishmaniasis , electrical engineering , pathology , engineering , alternative medicine
Electrical stimulation has been used as a mode of therapy for a number of clinical conditions. However, it has not been used for the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). For this purpose, we designed the “Baghdadin device”. A total of 146 lesions of acute CL in 54 patients were treated by this device. Twenty‐one lesions in the same patients were left untreated as controls. In addition, 36 lesions in 15 patients were treated with intralesional sodium stibogluconate. Treatment by the Baghdadin device consisted of weekly sessions of 10 minutes of direct current electrical stimulation. The intensity of the direct current ranged between 5 and 15 milliamperes, and the voltage was kept below 40 volts. Of the 146 lesions, 135 (92.5%) showed total clearance or marked improvement in 4–6 weeks time. Approximately 67% of the lesions needed only one or two sessions. Scarring was not observed after resolution. None of the untreated lesions showed any signs of improvement in 6 weeks. Of the lesions treated with sodium stibogluconate, 32 lesions (88.9%) showed total clearance or marked improvement, which was not significantly different from the results with the Baghdadin device.