Epidemiological aspects of American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the city of Juína, Mato Grosso state, Brazil <b>[Abstract in English]</b>

Abstract

Aims: To assess the possible consequences of anthropic action and to describe the epidemiological aspects of American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis, as its relationship to occupational activities, in urban and rural areas of Juína County, state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Methods: Data from the City Department of Health of Juína were analyzed. From 2004 to 2006, 458 notifications of the disease were analyzed. Results: We observed that among the notified cases of American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis there were more male individuals (89.10% of the cases). Age group between 20 to 39 years (49.10%) was the most frequent, and most people worked in farming and mine exploration (62.90%). When analyzing the possible source of infection, it has been observed that the great majority had previous contact with agricultural zone (95.40%). Cutaneous type lesions were the most frequent (94.10%). Conclusions: Our study showed that American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis is an important parasitosis in Juína County. Our data points to a relationship between the occurrence of the disease and occupational activities, and suggests that transmission occurs mainly in the forest zone, which is worth of attention for defining control measures in Juína region.