[Leishmaniasis in Ecuador. 6. Epidemiological and entomological note on the focus of leishmaniasis in Zumba]

The Zumba focus of tegumentary leishmaniasis lies in the southwards Amazonian region of Ecuador. A clinico-epidemiological study has been carried out in the area on 83 patients attending health centers. All the biotopes suitable for sandflies, including dwellings, have been sampled from February to September 1992 by light trap and human bait catches. The number of sandflies caught amounts to 2,547. Anthropophilic sandfly fauna is poor and only three species have been recorded. Lutzomyia serrana abounds inside dwellings where it bites men even during daytime. The parasite was identified as an intermediate form between Leishmania panamensis and L. braziliensis. It will be described elsewhere. The high proportion of facial lesions suggests a domiciliary transmission for which Lu. serrana could be a good vector candidate.