Serological and entomological survey in a zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis focus of North Central Anatolia, Turkey: Corum province

In the present study, we aimed to carry out an epidemiological and entomological survey on a visceral leishmaniasis (VL) focus located on the northern central part of Anatolia, Turkey. Five villages of Corum province, where five confirmed cases of human visceral leishmaniasis (HVL) (one patient/village) were reported between June 1998 and August 2001 were included in the study. A total of 625 children and 131 dogs were sampled and the physical examination was carried out by authorized physicians and veterinarians. An indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) was performed by standard procedures for human and dog sera, while the direct agglutination test (DAT) was only performed for dog sera. Sand fly collection was performed in three villages by CDC miniature light traps. Hepatosplenomegaly and hepatomegaly were detected in two and eight children, respectively. The seropositivity rate among children was found to be 0.16% (1/625) in the region. The seroprevalence of canine infection in these five villages ranged between 0.0% and 28.26%. In two villages, named Ahlatcik and Asagifindikli, no seropositive dogs were found. A total of 1218 sand flies were collected throughout the study. Six species of Phlebotomus were identified: P. transcaucasicus, P. neglectus, P. halepensis, P. tobbi, P. papatasi, and P. jacusieli. P. transcaucasicus was found to be the predominant species in Cevizli (47.44%; 343/723) and Ucoluk (79.95%; 351/439) villages, while P. tobbi was abundant in Kucukerikli (42.85%; 24/56).