Uruguay health officials reported the first human leishmaniasis case in a minor from Salta, according to a news release Wednesday (computer translated).

Sandfly/CDC
Sandfly/CDC

The sandfly vector was first found in the country in 2010 and canine infections had been reported prior to this human case.

According to the minister of the area, Jorge Basso, the patient is in good condition thanks to an early diagnosis and the immediate implementation of the treatment available in Uruguay.

Basso noted that Uruguay had not detected the insect vector of leishmaniasis until 2010. He said that eight years ago this sandfly was identified in some departments of the north of the country, particularly in Salto and Artigas. However, he noted that in the rest of the Americas, leishmaniasis in animals and humans was already endemic.

In 2015, the first cases of dogs with this disease were found. Since then, following the recommendations of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), health services work with the participation of the National Emergency System and the Departmental Emergency Committees in the monitoring and control of affected dogs, which implied the sacrifice of several of them.

The symptoms of the disease are: feverish picture of more than 15 days without another factor that explains it, thinning and anemia. In the physical examination a hepato or splenomegaly is verified, that is to say, the enlargement of the liver or the spleen and, with the paraclinical examinations, the diagnosis is specified.