Visceral leishmaniasis

This article is about visceral leishmaniasis in humans. For the disease in canids, see canine leishmaniasis.

Visceral leishmaniasis
kālā āzār
Other namesBlack fever, and Dumdum fever[1]
Amastigotes in a chorionic villus
Pronunciation
  • Kala-azar: (UK: /ˌkɑːlə əˈzɑːr/)
SpecialtyInfectious diseases Edit this on Wikidata

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala-azar (Hindi: kālā āzār, "black sickness")[2] or "black fever", is the most severe form of leishmaniasis and, without proper diagnosis and treatment, is associated with high fatality.[3] 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. Of particular concern, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is the emerging problem of HIV/VL co-infection.[4]

VL is the second-largest parasitic killer in the world (after malaria), responsible for an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 deaths each year worldwide.[5][6]

Upendranath Brahmachari synthesised urea stibamine (carbostibamide) in 1922 and determined that it was an effective substitute for the other antimony-containing compounds in the treatment of VL caused by Leishmania donovani.[7]

  1. ^ James, William D., Berger, Timothy G., et al. (2006). Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: clinical Dermatology. Saunders Elsevier. p. 426. ISBN 978-0-7216-2921-6.
  2. ^ "WHO | Visceral leishmaniasis". www.who.int. Archived from the original on July 15, 2013. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  3. ^ Das A, Karthick M, Dwivedi S, Banerjee I, Mahapatra T, Srikantiah S, Chaudhuri I (2016-11-01). "Epidemiologic Correlates of Mortality among Symptomatic Visceral Leishmaniasis Cases: Findings from Situation Assessment in High Endemic Foci in India". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 10 (11): e0005150. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0005150. ISSN 1935-2735. PMC 5117587. PMID 27870870.
  4. ^ "Leishmaniasis and HIV co-infection". WHO. Archived from the original on February 19, 2007.
  5. ^ "Leishmaniasis". WHO Fact sheet N°375. World Health Organization. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  6. ^ Desjeux P. (2001). "The increase of risk factors for leishmaniasis worldwide". Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 95 (3): 239–43. doi:10.1016/S0035-9203(01)90223-8. PMID 11490989.
  7. ^ Hazra K (July 7, 2023). "Upendranath Brahmachari—forgotten Bengali scientist behind kala-azar cure got 2 Nobel nods". theprint.in. Retrieved July 8, 2023.