Background : Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is an endemic disease in Iraq,\nnow is running in an outbreaks. Many therapies have been tried in treatment\nof the disease. Objective : Loranthus europaeus (LE) is a well-known medical\nplant and has many pharmacological effects in many in vitro studies. The aim\nof the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of 40% LE ointment and compared\nit with topical 25% podophyllin solution in treatment of acute CL. Patients\nand Methods : Thirty five patients with acute CL were enrolled in this single\nblinded, therapeutic, comparative study, which was done in the Department\nof Dermatology, Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq during January\n2015-Jully 2015. The total number of lesions were 86 (76 lesions treated and\nten lesions in a covered area left without treatment as control). Duration of lesions\nranged from 4 to 12 (7.37 �± 2.77) weeks. The size of lesions ranged from\n0.5 - 7 (2.81 �± 1.76) cm. Diagnosis was confirmed by biopsy and/or smears.\nLesions were divided in to two groups and scored as (mild, moderate, marked,\ncomplete cure) according to a modified Sharquieâ��s leishmania score to assess\nthe objective response to the topical or systemic therapy. Group A: Thirty\nthree (43.42%) lesions treated with topical 25% podophyllin solution once\nweekly for maximum 6 weeks. Group B : Forty three (56.58%) lesions treated\nwith 40% LE ointment once daily at bedtime for 6 hours under occlusion for\nmaximum 6 weeks. The followed-up was carried out every 2 weeks for 8\nweeks during treatment, then monthly for next three months after end of\ntherapy. Results : the total number of lesions was 86 lesions, 46 (53.49%) were\nulcerated and 40 (46.51%) were dry; 18 (51.43%) patients had single lesion\nwhile 17 (48.57%) patients had multiple lesions. At the end of therapy (6weeks after starting treatment), the cure rate was 84.84% in Group A, and\n79.07% in Group B. When the two groups compared with each other there\nwas no statistical significance difference were P value = 0.648. While untreated\nten lesions that lefts as control did not showed any signs of healing. Conclusion\n: Topical 40% Loranthus europaeus ointment is a new effective modality\nfor treatment of acute CL and as effective as 25% podophyllin solution with\nno any noticeable local or systemic side effects.
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