Abstract

ROMERO, Gustavo Adolfo Sierra; SAMPAIO, Raimunda Nonata Ribeiro; MACEDO, Vanize de Oliveira  and  MARSDEN, Philip Davis. Sensitivity of a Vacuum Aspiratory Culture Technique for Diagnosis of Localized Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in an Endemic Area of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis Transmission . Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz [online]. 1999, vol.94, n.4, pp. 505-508. ISSN 0074-0276.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0074-02761999000400014.

Sixty eight patients with localized cutaneous leishmaniasis from an area with Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis transmission had cultures performed with a modified Marzochi´s vacuum aspiratory puncture technique to establish sensitivity and contamination rate with this new method. Overall sensitivity of three aspirates was 47.1%; (CI_95% 39.4; 59.4) significantly greater than the sensitivity of a single one aspirate. Fungal contamination was observed in 6/204 (2.9%) inoculated culture tubes. We recommend that this useful technique should be adopted as routine for primary isolation of L. (V.) braziliensis from localized cutaneous ulcers.

Keywords : Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis; culture sensitivity; fungal contamination; vacuum aspiratory technique.