Diagnosis of Human Visceral Leishmaniasis by PCR Technique in Iraq

In the present study, 93 blood samples and 20 bone marrow aspirates from 93 patients with clinical symptoms suggestive of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) from three hospitals in Baghdad during the period October 2005 - May 2006, were screened using molecular and serological techniques. Samples that were negative (N = 50) in parasitological and serological tests were used as controls. Of the 93 samples analyzed by ELISA technique, 19 samples (17.7%) gave positive culture result on NNN medium. However, when the technique was combined with molecular characterization by PCR, 7 samples (36.8%) gave a positive result. Nineteen patients with Leishmania parasites in bone marrow cultures showed PCR amplification of the correct band, as did the seven bone marrow aspirates positive for Leishmania. None of the negative controls tested using PCR or in an ELISA assay. These results indicate that PCR could replace the conventional parasitological examination in the diagnosis of leishmaniasis since it provides very satisfactory results with clinical samples.