Epidemiological and Therapeutic Profile of Leishmaniasis in the Province of Al Haouz-Morocco

Abstract

The objectives of our study are to trace the epidemiological profile of cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis in the province of al Haouz and to study the effectiveness of the national control program against leishmaniasis in this endemic area. It is a descriptive epidemiological study of cases recorded in public health facilities (health centers) and in the service of infrastructure and provincial ambulatory activities (SIAAP) of the province al Haouz between 2015 and 2019. Also it is an evaluative study of the provincial leishmaniasis control program. We found 264 cases of CL (94.96%) and 14 cases of VL (5.03%). The age groups most affected by CL were 0-5 years and pediatric cases (age less than 15 years) represented 74.62 percent of all CL cases. Females accounted for 61.15 percent of CL cases. The evolution of the number of notified cases of CL each year showed significant variations with a minimum value of 36 in 2015 and a maximum value of 70 in 2018 with an average number of CL cases recorded per year of 52 cases. The period at risk of CL contamination was the second and third quarter of the year with a percentage of 69.7 percent. 93.18 percent of communes affected by CL were rural communes. Passive screening was 96.59 percent with a number of LC cases of 255. 248 CL cases (93.93% of cases) were treated locally and 2 cases (0.75%) were treated systemically. 14 cases of VL were recorded, with a minimum value of 1 case in 2016 and a maximum value of 5 cases in 2017.All cases were treated by general route. In the present study, the analysis of the annual incidence of CL per 100,000 inhabitants showed a clear decrease in this indicator from 4.48 in 2015 to 1.65 in 2019.