title: [Treatment of visceral leishmaniasis].
abstract: Aim of this report is to review the most important therapeutical choices in visceral leishmaniasis. The pentavalent antimonial derivatives (PAD) remain the first-line drugs despite the toxicity and the wide resistance. Among the other therapeutical options, the importance of lipid formulations of amphotericin B is emphasized; it is a valid resource for the treatment of leishmania-HIV co-infection in the European Mediterranean Countries; instead, due to the high cost, it cannot be proposed in developing Countries. Besides, the characteristics of other drugs are evaluated: pentamidine, aminosidine, miltefosine, allopurinol, ketoconazole, gamma-interferon; such options propose different validity in different geographical regions. Among these, interesting results are reported for miltefosine, both for efficacy and practicality of use. Finally, the importance of a vaccination strategy in endemic areas of developing Countries is underlined.
authors.affiliation: Unità Operativa di Malattie Infettive, Azienda Ospedaliera, Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli, Reggio Calabria, Italy. gfoti@katamail.com
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Foti
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000188:drug therapy*
vernacular_title: Il trattamento della leishmaniosi viscerale.