[Leish-l] FW: PRO/EDR> Leishmaniasis, tuberculosis - Syria

[jeffrey shaw]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ProMED-mail <promed at promed.isid.harvard.edu>

Date: 2012/12/26
Subject: PRO/EDR> Leishmaniasis, tuberculosis - Syria
To: promed-edr at promedmail.org


LEISHMANIASIS, TUBERCULOSIS - SYRIA

***********************************

A ProMED-mail post

<http://www.promedmail.org>

ProMED-mail is a program of the

International Society for Infectious Diseases

<http://www.isid.org>



Date: Tue 25 Dec 2012

SOURCE: Washington Post [edited]

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/as-fighting-rages-in-aleppo-syrians-face-hunger-disease-and-little-hope-of-aid/2012/12/25/86ab74f0-4d37-11e2-835b-02f92c0daa43_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines>






Leishmaniasis and tuberculosis increasing in Syria

--------------------------------------------------

Inevitably, disease is spreading among people whose immune systems

have been weakened by hunger, in a city [Aleppo] where sanitation has

broken down. Tuberculosis is ravaging some neighborhoods, and there

have been hundreds of cases of leishmaniasis, a skin disease

transmitted by sand flies, which are multiplying amid the heaps of

uncollected trash, said Saad Wafai, who serves on the crisis committee

of the Aleppo council.



At a small clinic in an abandoned shopping arcade -- set up by doctors

driven out of a hospital destroyed in an air strike -- the number of

patients has surged recently, to about 150 a day. For the 1st time,

physician Izzat al-Mizyad said, most show up not with injuries from

the war but infectious diseases, including hepatitis, respiratory

infections and scabies.



--

Communicated by:

ProMED-mail

<promed at promedmail.org>



[Leishmaniasis is transmitted by sand flies (_Phlebotomus_ spp.) and

the incubation period can be weeks to months. Cutaneous leishmaniasis

is caused by _Leishmania tropica_ and 30 000 cases were reported in

2008 (Alvar J et al. and the WHO Leishmaniasis Control Team.

Leishmaniasis Worldwide and Global Estimates of Its Incidence. PLoS

One. 2012; 7(5): e35671). Visceral leishmaniasis is rare but is found

from Aleoppo and towards the Turkish border. The reservoir for

_L.tropica_ is small rodents and for _L.infantium_ it is dogs.



It is no surprise that the incidence is increasing. Rodent and vector

control activities most probably no longer exist and leishmania

infected dogs are not captured and killed.



It it no surprise either that tuberculosis in on the increase. Syria

was in 2009 estimated to have 26 (range 22-31) new cases of

tuberculosis per 100 000 population (WHO World Tuberculosis Report

2012;

<http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/gtbr12_annex4.pdf>).

- Mod.EP]



[[Cutaneous lesions on a leg:

http://www.leishrisk.net/Leishrisk/UserFiles/Image/cutaneous%20lesion%201(1).jpg

on a dog's ear:

http://www.vetnext.com/fotos/Lm1.jpg

Sandfly biting finger

<http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/bf/Biting_sandfly.jpg/220px-Biting_sandfly.jpg>


Life cycle:

http://www.uni-tuebingen.de/modeling/images/leishmania_cycle.jpg

- Mod.JW]



A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at:

<http://healthmap.org/r/3aLZ>.]



.................................................ep/ejp/jw

*##########################################################*

************************************************************

ProMED-mail makes every effort to  verify  the reports  that

are  posted,  but  the  accuracy  and  completeness  of  the

information,   and  of  any  statements  or  opinions  based

thereon, are not guaranteed. The reader assumes all risks in

using information posted or archived by  ProMED-mail.   ISID

and  its  associated  service  providers  shall not be  held

responsible for errors or omissions or  held liable for  any

damages incurred as a result of use or reliance upon  posted

or archived material.

************************************************************

Donate to ProMED-mail. Details available at:

<http://www.isid.org/ProMEDMail_Donations.shtml>

************************************************************

Visit ProMED-mail's web site at <http://www.promedmail.org>.

Send all items for posting to: promed at promedmail.org (NOT to

an individual moderator).  If you do not give your full name

name and affiliation,  it may not be posted.  You may unsub-

scribe at  <http://www.isid.org/promedmail/subscribe.lasso>.

For  assistance  from   a   human   being,   send  mail  to:

<postmaster at promedmail.org>.

############################################################

############################################################


 		 	   		  
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lineu.icb.usp.br/pipermail/leish-l/attachments/20121228/c3b51259/attachment-0001.htm>