Epidemiological and Clinical Changes in American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis in an Area of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis Transmission Over a 20-Year Period

The Health Post of Corte de Pedra is located in a region endemic for American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) in the Brazilian state of Bahia, and it treats 500-1,300 patients annually. To describe temporal changes in the epidemiology of ATL, we reviewed a random sample of 10% of patient charts (N = 1,209) from 1988 to 2008. There was a twofold increase in the number of cases over the 20-year period, with fluctuations in 10-year cycles. Patients were most frequently male, between the ages of 10 and 30 years, and engaged in agricultural labor; 4.3% of patients had mucosal disease, and 2.4% of patients had disseminated disease. Over the study period, the number of disseminated cases increased threefold, the proportion of cases in younger patients and agricultural workers decreased, and the proportion of patients residing in coastal areas increased. ATL is on the rise in Bahia, with a 10-year periodicity and evolving changes in epidemiology and manifestations of disease.