Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan

Introduction: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is one of the neglected tropical diseases that affects impoverished communities throughout the world. In Pakistan CL is an endemic disease. Aims and objectives: This study aimed to determine the incidence of CL infection in the Baluchistan province of Pa...

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Main Authors: Syeda Atiya Bukhari, Lamia Shafqat, Khawar Bilal, Ashiq Hussain, Shaista Gul, Shumaila Naz, Naseer Ali Shah, Emina Dervišević, Lejla Dervišević, Zurifa Ajanović, Hajra Manahil, Muhammad Aamir Ghafoor Chaudhary, Ying Wang, Haroon Ahmed, Jianping Cao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries 2024-06-01
Series:Journal of Infection in Developing Countries
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Online Access:https://jidc.org/index.php/journal/article/view/17781
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author Syeda Atiya Bukhari
Lamia Shafqat
Khawar Bilal
Ashiq Hussain
Shaista Gul
Shumaila Naz
Naseer Ali Shah
Emina Dervišević
Lejla Dervišević
Zurifa Ajanović
Hajra Manahil
Muhammad Aamir Ghafoor Chaudhary
Ying Wang
Haroon Ahmed
Jianping Cao
author_facet Syeda Atiya Bukhari
Lamia Shafqat
Khawar Bilal
Ashiq Hussain
Shaista Gul
Shumaila Naz
Naseer Ali Shah
Emina Dervišević
Lejla Dervišević
Zurifa Ajanović
Hajra Manahil
Muhammad Aamir Ghafoor Chaudhary
Ying Wang
Haroon Ahmed
Jianping Cao
author_sort Syeda Atiya Bukhari
collection DOAJ
description Introduction: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is one of the neglected tropical diseases that affects impoverished communities throughout the world. In Pakistan CL is an endemic disease. Aims and objectives: This study aimed to determine the incidence of CL infection in the Baluchistan province of Pakistan from January 2020 to March 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A total of 1047 clinically suspected cases of CL from Bolan Medical College Hospital, Quetta, were followed up in the study. The data regarding the epidemiological characterstics, pathological information, and treatment of patients was collected. Results: Out of 1047 probable cases of CL, 594 (56.73%) cases were found to be positive for CL. Females had the highest infection rate, with the majority of reported cases being in the 0–9-year age group. Most CL cases were reported in April in the year 2020, with a few cases reported in June. But in the year 2021, the highest number of cases were reported in December. The number of overall cases has gradually increased in the year 2022, most likely because of the reduction in COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. The p value for the positive as compared to suspected cases in the years 2020, 2021, and 2022 was calculated as 0.8925, 0.8763, and 0.8535 respectively. Conclusion: Further epidemiological studies and health education campaigns are recommended to increase public awareness. It is strongly advised that local, provincial, and national health authorities establish and maintain effective leishmaniasis surveillance systems to promptly identify disease outbreaks and implement timely control measures.
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spelling doaj-art-de2a9f92f9ac465d8832909c968de76e2025-08-20T02:16:06ZengThe Journal of Infection in Developing CountriesJournal of Infection in Developing Countries1972-26802024-06-01180610.3855/jidc.17781Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, PakistanSyeda Atiya Bukhari0Lamia Shafqat1Khawar Bilal2Ashiq Hussain3Shaista Gul4Shumaila Naz5Naseer Ali Shah6Emina Dervišević7Lejla Dervišević8Zurifa Ajanović9Hajra Manahil10Muhammad Aamir Ghafoor Chaudhary11Ying Wang12Haroon Ahmed13Jianping Cao14Department of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, PakistanDepartment of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, PakistanNishtar Medical College University, Multan, PakistanDepartment of Microbiology, Bolan Medical Complex Hospital, Quetta, PakistanDepartment of Histopathology, Bolan Medical Complex Hospital, Quetta, PakistanDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Sciences, Rawalpindi, PakistanDepartment of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, PakistanDepartment of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sarajevo, Sarajevo Bosnia and HerzegovinaDepartment of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sarajevo, Sarajevo, Bosnia and HerzegovinaDepartment of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sarajevo, Sarajevo, Bosnia and HerzegovinaDepartment of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, PakistanDepartment of Prosthodontics, Islamic International Dental College, Ripah International University, Islamabad, PakistanNational Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research); Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China; World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai, ChinaDepartment of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, PakistanNational Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research); Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China; World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai, China Introduction: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is one of the neglected tropical diseases that affects impoverished communities throughout the world. In Pakistan CL is an endemic disease. Aims and objectives: This study aimed to determine the incidence of CL infection in the Baluchistan province of Pakistan from January 2020 to March 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A total of 1047 clinically suspected cases of CL from Bolan Medical College Hospital, Quetta, were followed up in the study. The data regarding the epidemiological characterstics, pathological information, and treatment of patients was collected. Results: Out of 1047 probable cases of CL, 594 (56.73%) cases were found to be positive for CL. Females had the highest infection rate, with the majority of reported cases being in the 0–9-year age group. Most CL cases were reported in April in the year 2020, with a few cases reported in June. But in the year 2021, the highest number of cases were reported in December. The number of overall cases has gradually increased in the year 2022, most likely because of the reduction in COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. The p value for the positive as compared to suspected cases in the years 2020, 2021, and 2022 was calculated as 0.8925, 0.8763, and 0.8535 respectively. Conclusion: Further epidemiological studies and health education campaigns are recommended to increase public awareness. It is strongly advised that local, provincial, and national health authorities establish and maintain effective leishmaniasis surveillance systems to promptly identify disease outbreaks and implement timely control measures. https://jidc.org/index.php/journal/article/view/17781Cutaneous leishmaniasisepidemiologyBaluchistanPakistan
spellingShingle Syeda Atiya Bukhari
Lamia Shafqat
Khawar Bilal
Ashiq Hussain
Shaista Gul
Shumaila Naz
Naseer Ali Shah
Emina Dervišević
Lejla Dervišević
Zurifa Ajanović
Hajra Manahil
Muhammad Aamir Ghafoor Chaudhary
Ying Wang
Haroon Ahmed
Jianping Cao
Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
Journal of Infection in Developing Countries
Cutaneous leishmaniasis
epidemiology
Baluchistan
Pakistan
title Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
title_full Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
title_fullStr Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
title_full_unstemmed Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
title_short Incidence of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in humans during the COVID-19 pandemic in Baluchistan Province, Pakistan
title_sort incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis in humans during the covid 19 pandemic in baluchistan province pakistan
topic Cutaneous leishmaniasis
epidemiology
Baluchistan
Pakistan
url https://jidc.org/index.php/journal/article/view/17781
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