Filariasis focus due to Mansonella ozzardi and Mansonella perstans in the Amazon Federal Territory of Venezuela.

The presence of filariasis was investigated through Knott's method in 40 Curripaco Indians from communities located on the Casiquiare and Guainia Rivers in the Amazon Federal Territory of Venezuela. The results gave an 82.5% prevalence for infections with Mansonella perstans and 30% for infections with M. ozzardi (mixed infections with M. perstans). In almost all the patients the parasite load was greater for M. perstans and varied between 1 and 327 microfilariae per ml. This paper presents for the first time the presence of a transmission focus of M. perstans in the Amazon Federal Territory and confirms the finding of M. ozzardi in the region.

Immunotherapy of localized, intermediate, and diffuse forms of American cutaneous leishmaniasis.

The clinical efficacy of immunotherapy for localized American cutaneous leishmaniasis with a combination of heat-killed Leishmania mexicana amazonensis promastigotes and viable BCG (bacille Calmette Guérin) has been compared with meglumine antimoniate chemotherapy and with BCG alone in a controlled clinical study in 217 patients. The results in the first two groups were comparable, with greater than 90% clinical cures with an average time of 16-18 w required for healing. The cure rate was considerably lower (42%) and more prolonged in the group receiving BCG alone. Secondary effects were observed in less than 5% of the patients receiving combined immunotherapy or BCG alone. In contrast, 49% of the patients receiving chemotherapy showed side effects. High therapeutic efficacy was also observed using combined immunotherapy in patients with intermediate and diffuse cutaneous leishmaniasis who were previously unresponsive to chemotherapy. Cure or clinical improvement was seen in all 11 patients with intermediate forms of the disease, and marked clinical improvement was observed in 9 of 10 patients with diffuse disease. The results on the efficacy of the combined vaccine in immunotherapy for American cutaneous leishmaniasis provide a strong rationale for studying its effectiveness in prophylactic trials.