Lymph node involvement in leishmaniasis.

Two U.S. Army soldiers acquired skin lesions of cutaneous leishmaniasis and enlarged lymph nodes while stationed in Panama. In the first case, parasites were histologically identified and cultured from the skin lesion and a contralateral lymph node. In the second case, parasites were cultured from an enlarged lymph node in a nodal group draining the lesion. These findings suggest that metastasis of cutaneous leishmanial infection may be more common than is generally appreciated.