Historical overview of infantile visceral leishmaniasis in El Agamy, Alexandria, Egypt. 2017

Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
Institute of Environmental Studies and Research, Ain Shams University, Abbassia, Cairo, 11566, Egypt. Electronic address: hakassem@aucegypt.edu.

Infantile visceral leishmaniasis (IVL) is considered a rare and neglected disease in Egypt. An outbreak of the disease in El Agamy, Alexandria occurred in 1982 although the disease was previously reported 80 years before. Epidemiological and entomological studies were conducted ever since the 1982 outbreak to identify human cases, the parasite, reservoir host and the sand fly vector. Leishmania infantum MON-98, a new and unique zymodeme, was responsible of the disease. Stray dogs acted as the reservoir host and Phlebotomus langeroni was the proven vector. The parasite isolates from human cases were identical to the parasite isolates from the reservoir host and the sand fly vector. The El Agamy focus in 1982 was basically a rural Bedouin setting of recently built cement houses surrounded by lime stone fences. The numbers of human cases of IVL in this area have been declining, with the last reported case in 2005. This coincides with the completion of irregular urbanization of El Agamy which resulted in the disappearance of P. langeroni. In this review, we characterize the old focus of IVL in El Agamy based on published literature to identify factors underlying the appearance and disappearance of the disease.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007898 Leishmaniasis, Visceral A chronic disease caused by LEISHMANIA DONOVANI and transmitted by the bite of several sandflies of the genera Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia. It is commonly characterized by fever, chills, vomiting, anemia, hepatosplenomegaly, leukopenia, hypergammaglobulinemia, emaciation, and an earth-gray color of the skin. The disease is classified into three main types according to geographic distribution: Indian, Mediterranean (or infantile), and African. Black Fever,Kala-Azar,Fever, Black,Kala Azar,Visceral Leishmaniasis
D010691 Phlebotomus A genus of PSYCHODIDAE which functions as the vector of a number of pathogenic organisms, including LEISHMANIA DONOVANI; LEISHMANIA TROPICA; Bartonella bacilliformis, and the Pappataci fever virus (SANDFLY FEVER NAPLES VIRUS).
D004196 Disease Outbreaks Sudden increase in the incidence of a disease. The concept includes EPIDEMICS and PANDEMICS. Outbreaks,Infectious Disease Outbreaks,Disease Outbreak,Disease Outbreak, Infectious,Disease Outbreaks, Infectious,Infectious Disease Outbreak,Outbreak, Disease,Outbreak, Infectious Disease,Outbreaks, Disease,Outbreaks, Infectious Disease
D004285 Dogs The domestic dog, Canis familiaris, comprising about 400 breeds, of the carnivore family CANIDAE. They are worldwide in distribution and live in association with people. (Walker's Mammals of the World, 5th ed, p1065) Canis familiaris,Dog
D004534 Egypt A country in northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula Its capital is Cairo. Arab Republic of Egypt,United Arab Republic
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D049673 History, 20th Century Time period from 1901 through 2000 of the common era. 20th Century History,20th Cent. History (Medicine),20th Cent. History of Medicine,20th Cent. Medicine,Historical Events, 20th Century,History of Medicine, 20th Cent.,History, Twentieth Century,Medical History, 20th Cent.,Medicine, 20th Cent.,20th Cent. Histories (Medicine),20th Century Histories,Cent. Histories, 20th (Medicine),Cent. History, 20th (Medicine),Century Histories, 20th,Century Histories, Twentieth,Century History, 20th,Century History, Twentieth,Histories, 20th Cent. (Medicine),Histories, 20th Century,Histories, Twentieth Century,History, 20th Cent. (Medicine),Twentieth Century Histories,Twentieth Century History
D049674 History, 21st Century Time period from 2001 through 2100 of the common era. 21st Century History,21st Cent. History (Medicine),21st Cent. History of Medicine,21st Cent. Medicine,Historical Events, 21st Century,History of Medicine, 21st Cent.,History, Twenty-first Century,Medical History, 21st Cent.,Medicine, 21st Cent.,21st Cent. Histories (Medicine),21st Cent. Medicines,21st Century Histories,Cent. Histories, 21st (Medicine),Cent. History, 21st (Medicine),Cent. Medicine, 21st,Cent. Medicines, 21st,Century Histories, 21st,Century Histories, Twenty-first,Century History, 21st,Century History, Twenty-first,Histories, 21st Cent. (Medicine),Histories, 21st Century,Histories, Twenty-first Century,History, 21st Cent. (Medicine),History, Twenty first Century,Medicines, 21st Cent.,Twenty-first Century Histories,Twenty-first Century History
D018314 Leishmania infantum A parasitic hemoflagellate of the subgenus Leishmania leishmania that infects man and animals and causes visceral leishmaniasis (LEISHMANIASIS, VISCERAL). Human infections are confined almost entirely to children. This parasite is commonly seen in dogs, other Canidae, and porcupines with humans considered only an accidental host. Transmission is by Phlebotomus sandflies. Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum,Leishmania donovani chagasi,Leishmania donovani infantum,Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi,Leishmania chagasi,Leishmania chagasi chagasi,Leishmania chagasi subsp. Chagasi,Leishmania infantum chagasi,Leishmania leishmania infantum,chagasi chagasi, Leishmania,chagasi, Leishmania,chagasi, Leishmania chagasi,chagasi, Leishmania infantum,donovani chagasi, Leishmania,donovani infantum, Leishmania,infantum chagasi, Leishmania,infantum, Leishmania donovani,infantum, Leishmania leishmania,leishmania infantum, Leishmania

Related Publications

Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1983, Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
January 1986, Annales de la Societe belge de medecine tropicale,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
October 1988, Annals of tropical medicine and parasitology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1986, Journal of medical entomology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1986, Journal of medical entomology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1988, European journal of epidemiology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1990, Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
January 1989, Annales de parasitologie humaine et comparee,
Hala A Kassem, and John C Beier, and Bahira M El Sawaf
December 1989, Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology,
Copied contents to your clipboard!