• epidemiology
• Italy
• leishmaniasis
• underestimated
• upsurge

The term leishmaniases refers collectively to various clinical syndromes that are caused by obligate intracellular protozoa ofLe the genus Leishmania (order Kinetoplastida). This is typically is a vector-borne zoonosis, with rodents, small mammals and canines as common reservoir hosts and human as incidental hosts.
The clinical manifestations of leishmaniasis depend on complex interactions resulting from the parasite’s species, invasiveness, tropism and pathogenicity, and the host’s immune response.
Clinically, leishmaniasis is divided into visceral, cutaneous, and mucosal syndrome. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that the public health impact of leishmaniasis worldwide has been grossly underestimated for many years. Leishmaniasis is considered one of the “most neglected diseases” given its strong association with poverty and the limited resources invested in new tools for diagnosis, treatment and control.
VL incidence has been increasing in Italy in humans and dogs since the 1990s, with new foci being detected within traditional boundaries of endemic transmission but also in northern regions previously regarded as non-endemic. The reasons for the recent upsurge of VL cases in Modena and Bologna Province are still unknown. Continental northern Italy is now focally endemic for VL and that a moderate risk for human disease does exist, although the current intensity of leishmania transmission seems to be lower than in traditional settings of Mediterranean VL.
In conclusion, the increase in human VL cases in an area of northern Italy raises important public health concerns. Firstly, there is an urgent need to expand the existing control measures for canine leishmaniasis. Secondly, healthcare professionals need to be informed of the upsurge in VL in the area to proceed with appropriate parasitological and serological tests in suspected cases, to promptly identify and treat cases of VL. Finally, the public needs to be aware of the potential exposure to sandfly bites in areas in which the parasite circulates, and to be educated in the use of appropriate preventive measures.

The term leishmaniases refers collectively to various clinical syndromes that are caused by obligate intracellular protozoa of the genus Leishmania (order Kinetoplastida). This is typically is a vector-borne zoonosis, with rodents, small mammals and canines as common reservoir hosts and human as incidental hosts. The clinical manifestations of leishmaniasis depend on complex interactions resulting from the parasite’s species, invasiveness, tropism and pathogenicity, and the host’s immune response. Clinically, leishmaniasis is divided into visceral, cutaneous, and mucosal syndrome. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that the public health impact of leishmaniasis worldwide has been grossly underestimated for many years. Leishmaniasis is considered one of the “most neglected diseases” given its strong association with poverty and the limited resources invested in new tools for diagnosis, treatment and control. VL incidence has been increasing in Italy in humans and dogs since the 1990s, with new foci being detected within traditional boundaries of endemic transmission but also in northern regions previously regarded as non-endemic. The reasons for the recent upsurge of VL cases in Modena and Bologna Province are still unknown. Continental northern Italy is now focally endemic for VL and that a moderate risk for human disease does exist, although the current intensity of leishmania transmission seems to be lower than in traditional settings of Mediterranean VL. In conclusion, the increase in human VL cases in an area of northern Italy raises important public health concerns. Firstly, there is an urgent need to expand the existing control measures for canine leishmaniasis. Secondly, healthcare professionals need to be informed of the upsurge in VL in the area to proceed with appropriate parasitological and serological tests in suspected cases, to promptly identify and treat cases of VL. Finally, the public needs to be aware of the potential exposure to sandfly bites in areas in which the parasite circulates, and to be educated in the use of appropriate preventive measures.