Leishmania (Viannia) Infection in the Domestic Dog in Chaparral, Colombia

1Although death from CL is rare, cutaneous lesions may generate psychological, social, and economic problems in affected populations. Moreover, chronic manifestations such as mucocutaneous disease are often refractory to chemotherapy and represent an important public health concern. The number of reported cases of leishmaniasis has increased in Colombia from an average of 6,500 new cases per year in the 1990s to approximately 20,000 cases reported in 2005 and 2006, of which 99% were CL. 2 Human CL in the Americas is considered a zoonotic disease, with human infection resulting from transmission from sylvatic mammalian reservoirs by bites of the sand fly vector ( Lutzomyia spp.). Cutaneous leishmaniasis in Colombia is usually associated with occupational contact with forest areas by adult males; few infections occur in young children. 3