Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak
Background: Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical disease, endemic in many worldwide foci including the Middle East. Several outbreaks have occurred in the Middle East over the past decades, mostly related to war-associated population migration. With the start of the Syrian war, the frequency and m...
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doaj-dece361474414d3a9eae5e9fb7667a5a2020-11-24T22:57:48ZengElsevierInternational Journal of Infectious Diseases1201-97121878-35112014-12-0129C11511910.1016/j.ijid.2014.04.023Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreakAli Alawieh0Umayya Musharrafieh1Amani Jaber2Atika Berry3Nada Ghosn4Abdul Rahman Bizri5Department of Neurosciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USADivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, LebanonFaculty of Medicine, Lebanese American University, Jbeil, LebanonCommunicable Diseases Department, Ministry of Public Health, Beirut, LebanonEpidemiological Surveillance Department, Ministry of Public Health, Beirut, LebanonDivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon Background: Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical disease, endemic in many worldwide foci including the Middle East. Several outbreaks have occurred in the Middle East over the past decades, mostly related to war-associated population migration. With the start of the Syrian war, the frequency and magnitude of these outbreaks increased alarmingly. We describe the epidemiology of Leishmania infection in Lebanon and the most recent outbreak relevant to the Syrian war. Methods: We reviewed all leishmaniasis cases reported to the Epidemiologic Surveillance Department at the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health between 2001 and the first quarter of 2014. The demographics and distribution of Syrian refugees in Lebanon were linked to reports of new Leishmania cases. Results: In total, 1033 new cases of leishmaniasis were reported in 2013 compared to a previous annual number in the range of 0–6 cases. The majority of cases reported in 2013 involved Syrian refugees and their relevant areas of concentration. Conclusions: This new outbreak of leishmaniasis in Lebanon is the first of its kind for more than a decade. The sudden increase in Leishmania cases in Lebanon in 2013 is attributed to the increasing numbers and wide distribution of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. This serves as an example of the risks associated with military conflicts and the ability of communicable diseases to cross borders. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1201971214015197LeishmaniaMiddle EastLebanonCutaneous leishmaniasisVisceral leishmaniasis |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Ali Alawieh Umayya Musharrafieh Amani Jaber Atika Berry Nada Ghosn Abdul Rahman Bizri |
spellingShingle |
Ali Alawieh Umayya Musharrafieh Amani Jaber Atika Berry Nada Ghosn Abdul Rahman Bizri Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak International Journal of Infectious Diseases Leishmania Middle East Lebanon Cutaneous leishmaniasis Visceral leishmaniasis |
author_facet |
Ali Alawieh Umayya Musharrafieh Amani Jaber Atika Berry Nada Ghosn Abdul Rahman Bizri |
author_sort |
Ali Alawieh |
title |
Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak |
title_short |
Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak |
title_full |
Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak |
title_fullStr |
Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak |
title_full_unstemmed |
Revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the Syrian conflict and the Lebanese outbreak |
title_sort |
revisiting leishmaniasis in the time of war: the syrian conflict and the lebanese outbreak |
publisher |
Elsevier |
series |
International Journal of Infectious Diseases |
issn |
1201-9712 1878-3511 |
publishDate |
2014-12-01 |
description |
Background: Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical disease, endemic in many worldwide foci including the Middle East. Several outbreaks have occurred in the Middle East over the past decades, mostly related to war-associated population migration. With the start of the Syrian war, the frequency and magnitude of these outbreaks increased alarmingly. We describe the epidemiology of Leishmania infection in Lebanon and the most recent outbreak relevant to the Syrian war.
Methods: We reviewed all leishmaniasis cases reported to the Epidemiologic Surveillance Department at the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health between 2001 and the first quarter of 2014. The demographics and distribution of Syrian refugees in Lebanon were linked to reports of new Leishmania cases.
Results: In total, 1033 new cases of leishmaniasis were reported in 2013 compared to a previous annual number in the range of 0–6 cases. The majority of cases reported in 2013 involved Syrian refugees and their relevant areas of concentration.
Conclusions: This new outbreak of leishmaniasis in Lebanon is the first of its kind for more than a decade. The sudden increase in Leishmania cases in Lebanon in 2013 is attributed to the increasing numbers and wide distribution of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. This serves as an example of the risks associated with military conflicts and the ability of communicable diseases to cross borders.
|
topic |
Leishmania Middle East Lebanon Cutaneous leishmaniasis Visceral leishmaniasis |
url |
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1201971214015197 |
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