Leishmaniosis

Leishmaniosis: a zoonosis to consider

1. Majorities
2. Sintomatología
3. Diagnosis
4. Treatment
5. Prophylaxis

Majorities
The leishmaniosis (well-known in Africa as Kala-chance) is an infectious disease caused by a parasite denominated leishmania, endemic disease in tropical and subtropical scenes from deserts to forests and, from countryside to periurbanas areas.
It affects dogs, rats, foxes, wolves and in rare occasions to the man, it is infected by means of the puncture of a mosquito (the one of the sand) that has itched previously to a mammal infected by the leishmaniosis.
The main reservorios are erosive dogs and; the people are probably accidental guests. Which exists a period of variable incubation (between two and three years) during an infected animal does not suffer symptoms of the disease, happened this one period they begin to appear clinical signs that years can last, characteristic that stays in the humans.

Sintomatología
The clinical sintomatología can very be varied depending on the infestación degree, the immune state of the hospedador, the affected time of evolution and organs.
Different forms from the disease exist:

Cutaneous:
The more frequent cutaneous signs are:

* Cutaneous thickening and excessive growth of the nails (hiperqueratosis)
* Loss of the hair around the eyes
* Mucocutáneas ulcers, hurt that do not heal
* Intraskin nodules mainly in snout, plantar ears and bearings.

Visceral:
It is the most serious form of the disease, the symptoms of this variant include:

* Persistent fever
* Pigmentación of the skin
* Loss of weight (progressive thinning)
* Poliuria - polidipsia (tinkles and drinks much: indicative of renales injuries)
* Ganglia increased of size
* Nasal hemorrhages
* Cojeras (poliartritis)
* Others: digestive upheavals, hepática insufficiency, hematopoyéticas alterations.

Diagnosis
It is of great importance the precocious diagnosis of the leishmaniosis, this allows us to restore the treatment as rapidly as possible to control his evolution.
It is made through the biopsy to medular, intervention that allows to put in evidence leishmanias.
The definitive diagnosis is made by means of analysis of laboratory like those of inmunohistoquímica or the genetic ones like the PCR.

Treatment
It is important to understand that although is a disease for which curativo treatment does not exist, but to even extend and to improve the quality of life of its mascot arriving to pass the disease unnoticed.
The antimonial pentavalentes are used: metilglucamina and sódico estibogluconato, cexiastes others such as the anfotericina B (better alternative at the present time for the resistant ones), the pentamidina and ketoconazol.
The tendency of the infected dogs to fall after one apparent priest reinforces the hypothesis that the infection by leishmaniosis is not cured.
This last data also raises the doubt and the question that the affected dogs, incriminados like reservorios of the human disease, must sacrifice themselves to avoid the extension of the disease understanding that they constitute a potential danger for the man.
(The therapy, cradle in the use of antimony salts, anticipates four periods of cures with a duration of two weeks each one and an interval of ten days between both. The used drug is the Glucantin, by intramuscular route, in dose of 0.3 grams by each 3 kg of corporal weight).

Prophylaxis
To the being the mosquitos of the sand the people in charge of the diffusion of the leishmaniosis, for a radical prevention of this protozoonosis, the then then fight will have to concentrate themselves against them.
The prophylaxis receives much importance in this case is recommended to fumigate the surroundings to avoid the mosquitos to the maximum, in case of dogs that live in field or garden, adapted antiparasitic product use on the atmosphere and the animal (necklaces spray, dusts etc?) and to concur to its veterinarian for periodic controls and complete controls.

Bibliography

Author: MV Adelaida A. Goldman

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