Parasite load decrease during application of a safe and easily applied antileishmanial aminoglycoside cream.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a disfiguring illness caused by Leishmania species of protozoa, with over 350 million people at risk worldwide [1]. Leishmania parasites enter the skin through a sandfly bite, producing a papule or nodule that generally ulcerates [1]. Spontaneous resolution of CL ulcers may take months to years [2], and both active lesions and scars can engender stigma and cause disability [3]. There is no consensus regarding the optimum therapy for CL, and no single treatment approach fits all possible clinical presentations [1], [2]. However, because systemic treatments may produce considerable toxicity [1], [2], [4], localized therapy (e.g., intralesional antimonials, cryotherapy, thermotherapy, or intralesional injections plus cryotherapy) is now recommended in Old World CL (L. major, L. tropica) and in selected cases of New World CL [1], [2]. However, all present local therapy modalities have limitations, e.g., variable cure rates, pain, challenges and complexities associated with treatment administration (especially in children), and variable utility in patients with multiple lesions or lesions located on body areas where local treatment is impractical [1], [2], [5].