Visceral leishmaniasis in pregnant women from Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil: A case report and literature review

• Published in: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Main Authors: Francielly Tertulino Cunha, Isadora Correia Lopes, Francisco Clitson Sousa Oliveira, Igor Thiago Queiroz
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2019
• Subjects: Visceral leishmaniasis; Pregnancy; Liposomal amphotericin B; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0233-2018; https://doaj.org/article/acd91936d5cf46199666aac8b6698347

Abstract Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in pregnant is considered rare. We present the case of a woman with 24 gestational weeks presenting fever, hepatosplenomegaly, pancytopenia, and inversion of albumin/globulin ratio. Anti-rK39 was positive and amastigotes were visualized on myelogram. Treatment with LAmB showed disease improvement. The newborn was born healthy at term, with delivery performed without complications. As VL in pregnancy can progress to death and complications for the mother-fetus binomial, inclusion of VL in the differential diagnosis of patients from endemic areas with compatible clinical picture is mandatory. Treatment with LAmB demonstrates safety and high cure rates in pregnancy.