Atypical cutaneous leishmaniasis in a semiarid region of north-west Costa Rica

Abstract

An outbreak of an unusual cutaneous disease was observed during 1986-1987 in about 200 persons, mainly children, in a few neighbourhoods of the town of Liberia, Guanacaste Province, north-west Costa Rica. Most of the cases were from Nazareth, a neighbourhood, developed in 1978, with about 1200 persons, at least 5% of whom are Nicaraguan immigrants. Scattered cases have been recognized since 1976 and at that time the disease was identified as nodular infantile tuberculoid leprosy.Durante 1986-1987 se observó un brote de una enfermedad cutánea inusual observado durante 1986-1987 en unas 200 personas, principalmente niños, en algunos barrios de la ciudad de Liberia, provincia de Guanacaste, noroeste de Costa Rica. La mayoría de los casos procedían de Nazaret, un barrio, desarrollado en 1978, con unas 1200 personas, de las cuales al menos el 5% son inmigrantes nicaragüenses. Se han reconocido casos dispersos desde 1976 y en ese momento la enfermedad se identificó como lepra tuberculoide infantil nodular.