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Definition of New World leishmaniasis
1. Noun. A form of leishmaniasis endemic in Mexico and Central American and South America; sores are limited to the skin and mucosa.
Generic synonyms: Kala Azar, Leishmaniasis, Leishmaniosis
Medical Definition of New World leishmaniasis
1. A grave disease caused by Leishmania braziliensis braziliensis, endemic in southern Mexico and Central and South America, except for the equatorial region of Chile; the organism does not invade the viscera, and the disease is limited to the skin and mucous membranes, the lesions resembling the sores of cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by L. Mexicana or L. Tropica; the chancrous sores heal after a time, but some months or years later, fungating and eroding forms of ulceration may appear on the tongue and buccal or nasal mucosa; many variants of the disease exist, marked by differences in distribution, vector, epidemiology, and pathology, which suggest that it may in fact be caused by a number of closely related aetiological agents. See: espundia. Synonym: American leishmaniasis, leishmaniasis americana, nasopharyngeal leishmaniasis, New World leishmaniasis. (05 Mar 2000)