Case Report: Simple Nodular Cutaneous Leishmaniasis Caused by Autochthonous Leishmania (Mundinia) orientalis in an 18-Month-Old Girl: The First Pediatric Case in Thailand and Literature Review

Abstract

We report an autochthonous case of simple, localized cutaneous leishmaniasis in a healthy 18-month-old girl from southern Thailand. The patient presented with a solitary chronic cutaneous nodular lesion on her left cheek for approximately 1 year. Histopathological dissection of the cheek skin biopsy demonstrated remarkably nodular and interstitial infiltrates of lymphocytes and histiocytes full of intracellular oval-shaped amastigotes, consistent with cutaneous leishmaniasis. The Leishmania promastigotes were also cultured successfully from the lesion biopsy and were designated with the WHO code MHOM/TH/2021/CULE5. Using internal transcribed spacer 1-specific polymerase chain reaction, the parasite DNA was demonstrated in both saliva and lesion biopsy. Based on the BLASTn and phylogenetic analysis, the parasite was identified as Leishmania orientalis, clustered in the Mundinia subgenus. The patient responded well to a 6-week course of oral itraconazole, without recurrence. To our knowledge, this is the fourth case of autochthonous leishmaniasis resulting from L. orientalis and the youngest patient of leishmaniasis ever reported in Thailand. More importantly, we also demonstrate the clinical course of the lesion according to the timeline before and after treatment, which can help physicians better understand and provide an accurate diagnosis with appropriate treatment of this emerging parasitic disease.