Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 21, 2025
Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Dorsal Skin of Hamsters: a Useful Model for the Screening of Antileishmanial Drugs
Published on: April 21, 2012
Pediatric visceral leishmaniasis in Tartous, Syria
Ali Othman Hamwi1, Ali Abdallatif Mohammad1, Sara Othman Hamwi1
1College of Medicine, University of Tartous, Tartous, Syrian Arab Republic.
Insights
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Syrian children, caused by *Leishmania infantum*, presents with anemia, fever, and enlarged spleen/liver. Meglumine antimonate remains effective for treating this pediatric disease.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric infectious diseases
- Parasitology
- Public health in the Middle East
Background:
- Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Syria is caused by *Leishmania infantum*, a severe disease primarily affecting infants.
- VL poses a significant health challenge, particularly in endemic regions like Syria.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment outcomes of pediatric VL in Syria.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of meglumine antimonate in treating VL in this population.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of hospital records for 19 children diagnosed with VL between June 2016 and July 2019.
- Clinical data, laboratory findings, and treatment responses were analyzed.
Main Results:
- The median age of patients was 45.5 months; all were immunocompetent.
- Common symptoms included pallor, anemia, fever, splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, thrombocytopenia, and leukopenia.
- Microscopic examination of bone marrow aspirates confirmed *Leishmania* amastigotes in all cases. Meglumine antimonate was effective in most patients.
Conclusions:
- Pediatric VL in Syria is characterized by specific clinical and hematological findings.
- Microscopic diagnosis is reliable for *Leishmania* detection.
- Meglumine antimonate demonstrates continued high efficacy for treating VL in Syria, despite global concerns about reduced sensitivity.
Background:
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) type in Syria is Lashmania infantum, a fatal incapacitating disease, which is mostly seen in infants.
Subjects And Methods:
Hospital records of 19 children with VL were retrospectively reviewed. The period of the study was from June 2016 to July 2019.
Results:
The median age of the patients was 45.5 months. None was coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus or known to be immunocompromised. Pallor and anemia were observed in all cases, fever in 13 (68.42%), splenomegaly in 18 (94.7%), hepatomegaly in 11 (57.9%), thrombocytopenia in 15 (78.95%), and leukopenia in nine (47.4%). A bone marrow aspirate was obtained and Leishmania amastigotes were detected in all patients. All patients were initially treated with meglumine antimonate; one child did not respond and was treated with lipid formulations of amphotericin B.
Conclusions:
Presentation of VL in the pediatric age group is characterized by pallor, fever, splenomegaly, and hepatomegaly. Hematological and biochemical indices are typical with cytopenias. In all cases, microscopic examination provided a positive diagnosis. Despite recent reports on decreased responses to antimonial drugs of patients with Mediterranean VL, meglumine antimonate treatment appears to be still highly effective in Syria.
