Cutaneous leishmaniasis by a needlestick injury, an occupational infection?

Abstract

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease caused by over 20 species of Leishmania. Transmission is mainly via sandfly bites infected with promastigotes, through the placenta from mother to child, by sexual intercourse, blood transfusion, and occupationally acquired by direct inoculation into the skin. Clinical manifestations vary from self-limited cutaneous disease to a life-threatening visceral infection. In November 2021, a 29-year-old otherwise healthy dermatology resident suffered an accidental needlestick injury while performing a biopsy on a patient with a presumptive diagnosis of an infectious dermatosis, later confirmed as mucocutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania panamensis. Later, the resident developed an erythematous, painless papule at the point of inoculation, with a central ulcer and painful enlargement of ipsilateral lymph nodes. Biopsy was compatible with leishmaniasis. After completing a 20-day treatment with meglumine antimoniate, the ulcer had healed completely. At the 6-month follow-up, both patients remain asymptomatic. This case serves as a reminder that health providers should have the proper training and knowledge of their hospital management protocol for occupational injuries. Moreover, physicians should bear in mind that leishmaniasis is not exclusively transmitted by sandfly vectors.