Treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis with cryosurgery.
BACKGROUND
The management of cutaneous leishmaniasis with topical methods, if effective, can spare patients from long and costly inpatient treatments.


METHODS
Seventeen patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis were treated with cryosurgery using liquid nitrogen as the cryogen. Two cycles of 10-30 s freezing time were used and repeated at 3-week intervals.


RESULTS
All patients responded well to therapy with excellent cosmetic results and no relapse in any case. Side-effects were rare.


CONCLUSIONS
Cutaneous leishmaniasis can be successfully treated with a simple protocol of cryosurgery with minor side-effects.
Panagiotopoulos
Antonios
A
Department of Cryosurgery, Third Department of Dermatology and Venereology, University of Athens School of Medicine, A. Syggros Hospital, Athens, Greece.
Stavropoulos
Panagiotis G
PG
Hasapi
Vassiliki
V
Papakonstantinou
Anastasia-Metaxia
AM
Petridis
Athanassios
A
Katsambas
Andreas
A
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D003452:Cryosurgery / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D062109:Dermatologic Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D017496:Hypopigmentation / Q000209:etiology; D016773:Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome