Leishmaniasis Epidemiology and Psychosocial Aspect

Abstract

Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical and the most important vector-borne disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania, transmitted by female sand-fly vector to the vertebrate host including human, highly correlated with poverty, malnutrition, climate and environmental factors such as crowded living conditions and poor sanitation that affect health, wellbeing, and livelihoods of millions of people around the world. Transmission is complex due to relationships between reservoir hosts, parasites, sand fly vectors, and socio-environmental risk factors. There are various clinical manifestations, ranging from spontaneously healing cutaneous lesions to potentially fatal visceral leishmaniasis caused by different Leishmania species. The psychological long-term manifestations leading to stigmatization, social exclusion, discrimination, and psychosocial impacts, advocating the importance of the One Health approach to combat these diseases effectively.