Volume : VIII, Issue : IV, April - 2019

Studies on Visceral Leishmaniasis in Darbhanga Region:Epiderniological Perspectives

Arti Kumari

Abstract :

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala–azar, black fever, and Dumdum fever, is the most severe form of leishmaniasis and, without proper diagnosis and treatment, is associated with high fatality. Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania. The parasite migrates to the internal organs such as the liver, spleen (hence "visceral"), and bone marrow, and, if left untreated, will almost always result in the death of the host. Signs and symptoms include fever, weight loss, fatigue, anemia, and substantial swelling of the liver and spleen. This disease is the second–largest parasitic killer in the world (after malaria), responsible for an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 infections each year worldwide. Progress of the disease is extremely variable, taking anywhere from one to twenty weeks, but a typical duration for the Sudanese strain of the disease is narrower, between twelve and sixteen weeks. Even with recovery, kala–azar does not always leave its hosts unmarked. Sometime after successful treatment—generally a few months with African kala–azar, or as much as several years with the Indian strain—a secondary form of the disease may set in, called post kala–azar dermal leishmaniasis, or PKDL. This condition manifests first as small, measle–like skin lesions on the face, which gradually increase in size and spread over the body. Eventually the lesions may coalesce to form disfiguring, swollen structures resembling leprosy, and occasionally causing blindness if they spread to the eyes. (This disease is not the same as cutaneous leishmaniasis, a milder disease caused by another protozoan of the Leishmania genus which also causes skin lesions. This paper is focused upon the studies of Visceral Leishmaniasis.

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Article: Download PDF   DOI : 10.36106/ijsr  

Cite This Article:

STUDIES ON VISCERAL LEISHMANIASIS IN DARBHANGA REGION:EPIDERNIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES, Arti Kumari INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH : Volume-8 | Issue-4 | April-2019

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