Epidemiology of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Suriname: a study performed in 2006

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a widespread disease in Suriname caused by Leishmania Viannia guyanensis. It is argued that other Leishmania species are also responsible for CL and that the incidence is increasing. This study aimed to identify the species causing the disease and to estimate the annual detection rate of CL in Suriname in 2006. In Paramaribo, 152 patients were registered, of whom 33 were tested in two polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) methods. Twenty-seven patients were infected with L. (V.) guyanensis (complex), one with L. (V.) lainsoni, and one with L. (Leishmania) amazonensis. In the hinterland, 162 CL suspected patients were registered by questionnaires; of these, 24 of 27 tested positive by PCR-RFLP (88.9%; 95% CI, 77.1-100%). With extrapolation of collected data, a detection rate was calculated of 5.32 to 6.13 CL patients per 1,000 inhabitants for the hinterland and 0.64 to 0.74 patients per 1,000 inhabitants for the whole country.