{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T19:22:10Z","timestamp":1790709730022,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,11,10]],"date-time":"2021-11-10T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1636502400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosntds.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS Negl Trop Dis"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n<jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Leishmaniasis is a neglected disease caused by different species of the protozoa <jats:italic>Leishmania spp<\/jats:italic>. Cutaneous lesions are the most common clinical manifestation. This disease is prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas, including the Mediterranean basin. In Spain, <jats:italic>Leishmania (L<\/jats:italic>.<jats:italic>) infantum<\/jats:italic> is the only endemic species, but imported cases are often diagnosed. Different classical parasitological methods can be performed for cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) diagnosis; but currently molecular techniques serve as a relevant tool for the detection and characterization of <jats:italic>Leishmania<\/jats:italic> parasites. We aimed to evaluate clinical and epidemiological characteristics of CL diagnosed patients by real-time PCR in a tertiary hospital over a six-year period.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n<jats:title>Methodology\/Principal findings<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Clinical, epidemiological and microbiological data were retrospectively collected and analyzed. In our study, CL was confirmed in 59 (31.4%) out of 188 patients by real-time PCR, showing an increase over recent years: 11 cases of CL between 2014 and 2016 and 48 between 2017 and 2019. Real-time PCR was performed on skin swabs and\/or biopsies samples, with a positivity of 38.5% and 26.5%, respectively. Results were 100% concordant when biopsy and skin swab were performed simultaneously. <jats:italic>L<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>(L<\/jats:italic>.<jats:italic>) infantum<\/jats:italic> was the most frequent species detected (50%), followed by <jats:italic>L<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>(L<\/jats:italic>.<jats:italic>) major<\/jats:italic> (45%) and <jats:italic>Viannia<\/jats:italic> subgenus (5%), which were detected only in imported cases. <jats:italic>L<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>(L<\/jats:italic>.<jats:italic>) major<\/jats:italic> was almost entirely detected in travelers\/migrants from Morocco. Multiple and atypical skin lesions were more common in imported cases than in autochthonous cases (44.4% vs. 21.8%).<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n<jats:title>Conclusions\/Significance<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>An increase in both autochthonous and imported CL cases has been observed in past years in our hospital. Molecular techniques assist in improving CL diagnosis and characterization of the <jats:italic>Leishmania<\/jats:italic> species, mainly in imported cases.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pntd.0009884","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,11,10]],"date-time":"2021-11-10T19:33:25Z","timestamp":1636572805000},"page":"e0009884","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pntd.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":18,"title":["Changes in the microbiological diagnosis and epidemiology of cutaneous leishmaniasis in real-time PCR era: A six-year experience in a referral center in Barcelona"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Aroa","family":"Silgado","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mayuli","family":"Armas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Adri\u00e1n","family":"S\u00e1nchez-Montalv\u00e1","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1471-4461","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Lidia","family":"Goterris","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1394-197X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Maria","family":"Ubals","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9516-1680","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Jordi","family":"Temprana-Salvador","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gloria","family":"Aparicio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1297-1376","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Carmen","family":"Chicharro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"N\u00faria","family":"Serre-Delcor","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Berta","family":"Ferrer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6642-7515","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Israel","family":"Molina","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1654-6035","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Vicen\u00e7","family":"Garc\u00eda-Patos","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tomas","family":"Pumarola","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9783-6060","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Elena","family":"Sulleiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,11,10]]},"reference":[{"key":"pntd.0009884.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"951","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(18)31204-2","volume":"392","author":"S Burza","year":"2018","journal-title":"Leishmaniasis. 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