IMPORTED MUCOCUTANEOUS LEISHMANIASIS

We report a case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in an otherwise fit Ca ucasian man who had travelled in an endemic area. Initial tissue micro scopy failed to identify the causative organism, which was only determ ined by subsequent culture as Leishmania braziliensis. This case illus trates the variability in the presence of Leishman-Donovan (LD) bodies in histopathological studies and emphasizes the need for culture in s uspected cases of leishmaniasis, particularly given the ability of cer tain Leishmania species such as L. braziliensis to cause recalcitrant and destructive infections of the nose and mouth.