Khadija Nuzhat Humayun, Fyezah Jehan, Sajid Soofi, Taimur Saleem, Umair Khalid.
Use of miltefosine in the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis in children at a tertiary care hospital of Karachi.
J Pak Med Assoc Jan ;65(6):489-91.

Existing standard treatment options for visceral leishmaniasis are less than optimal. We report here the use of oral miltefosine in the treatment of two paediatric cases of visceral leishmaniasis at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. One patient came from Balochistan while the second patient was from Northern Pakistan. Both presented with a prolonged history of fever, massive hepatosplenomegaly, anaemia and thrombocytopenia. Visceral leishmaniasis was diagnosed with bone marrow studies. Amphotericin B was first started in the first patient; however severe hypokalaemia and allergic reaction occurred. Oral miltefosine was then administered. The child showed clinical improvement with regards to signs of leishmania infection but succumbed to a nosocomial infection during the hospital stay. In the second patient, miltefosine was started in the first instance. He showed remarkable clinical improvement. At 2 months follow-up, the child showed adequate weight gain along with successful resolution of hepatosplenomegaly and fever. Miltefosine has the potential to be considered a first line therapy for visceral leishmaniasis in developing countries; however larger studies are warranted to validate the trends observed in this small case series.

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