Clinical and Laboratory Findings of Visceral Leishmaniasis in Children Hospitalized in Mashhad, Northeastern Iran: A Twenty-Year Retrospective Study



Shamsian SA^{1, 2} ; Fata A^{1, 3} ; Alinezhad R¹ ; Mohebali M⁴ ; Sadabadi F¹ ; Moghaddas E¹ ; Fakhar M⁵ Show Affiliations
Source: Iranian Journal of Parasitology Published:2020

Abstract

Background: Over the last decade, a few cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) have been reported in some provinces of northeastern Iran. We aimed to investi-gate clinical and laboratory findings of VL among children who admitted to the pediatric ward in a referral hospital in Mashhad, northeastern Iran. Methods: A retrospective study, between 1997 and 2017, was performed on the data sheet registered for children with confirmed VL at the referral Emam Reza Hospital in Mashhad. Hematological and biochemical profiles of the patients were analyzed. Results: Thirty-five children with VL, confirmed by the presence of amastigotes of Leishmania in Giemsa stained smears of the bone marrow, had been recorded through 20 yr. The mean age of patients was 3.7±4 yr. The majority of the patients suffered from hepatosplenomegaly (100%, n=35/35), followed by pro-longed fever and pallor (91%, n=32/35), weight loss (85%, n=30/35). The main laboratory findings were anemia (94.1%), leukopenia (52.9%) and thrombocyto-penia (70.5%). Almost one-third (37.1%; 13/35) of VL patients inhabited in rural areas of the Bojnoord district as a known VL endemic focus in northeastern Iran. Conclusion: Our preliminary data showed that the origin of VL is still in some districts other than Mashhad, where VL just will be diagnosed. © 2020, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved.