Cutaneous Leishmaniasis Associated With the Level of Poverty of the Andean Rural Population: A Five-Year Single-Center Study

Abstract

Introduction: Leishmaniasis is a disease that dramatically afflicts American populations as it is related to socioeconomic factors such as poverty. We aimed to determine the incidence of Leishmaniasis associated with poverty level among patients admitted to the Celendin Regional Hospital in Cajamarca, Peru. Materials and Methods: This single-center, retrospective study included 250 peri-urban and rural patients (mean 29.3±20 years) diagnosed with leishmaniasis during 2015-2020. A collection card was used to extract the clinical, and epidemiological information. We used the 2013 Fondo de Cooperación para el Desarrollo Social (FONCODES) to estimate the level of poverty in Cajamarca. Results: Of total, 156 (37.6%) were positive for cutaneous leishmaniasis and the most common lesions were the upper limbs (110 [44%]) and the head (24 [9.6%]). The most frequent place origin of patients weres Celendín (54 [21.6%]), Huasmin (58 [23.2%]), and Utco (13 [5.2%]) district. The highest incidence rate of Leishmaniasis was found in the districts of Utco (0.93 × 1000 inhabitants) and Huasmin (0.41 × 1000 inhabitants). We found that the poverty rate (p = 0.002) and extreme poverty rate (p = 0.001) were positively associated with the incidence of Leishmaniasis. The most affected age group were those <18 years-old (61 [62.2%]) (p = 0.029). Conclusions: We determined a significant association between poverty and leishmaniasis cases in the Peruvian Andean population.