Open AccessPost-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis mimicking leprosy: experience with 4 patients, with some unusual features in 1
Author(s) -
Sandipan Dhar,
Inderjeet Kaur,
G. Dawn,
Shobha Sehgal,
B Kumar
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
leprosy review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 2162-8807
pISSN - 0305-7518
DOI - 10.5935/0305-7518.19950029
Subject(s) - medicine , sodium stibogluconate , leprosy , histopathology , dermatology , leishmaniasis , histopathological examination , miltefosine , clofazimine , cutaneous leishmaniasis , pathology , leishmania donovani , dapsone , visceral leishmaniasis
We report on 4 cases of post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL). History of kala-azar was available in all 4 patients. Slit-skin smears (SSS) for leishmania donovani (LD) bodies were negative in all 4. In 3 patients hypopigmented lesions were present over the face. Papules and nodules over his lips, tongue, scrotum and dactylitis were some unusual features observed in 1 patient. Histopathological examination showed LD bodies in 2 patients; histopathology was nonspecific in the other 2. All the patients were treated with sodium stibogluconate, 20 mg/kg/day. Infiltrated papules and nodules had subsided by 3 months, while hypopigmented macules took longer to improve. In 3 patients there had previously been a misdiagnosis as leprosy sufferers and they had been treated with antileprosy drugs. Clinical and histopathological differences between PKDL and leprosy are discussed.