Cutaneous leishmaniasis in an Italian woman: case report.

Leishmaniasis is a sandfly-borne disease caused by a protozoan. The typical lesion of cutaneous leishmaniasis first appears as an erythematous papule at the site of inoculation, increases slowly in size, develops raised borders, and eventually ulcerates. The pentavalent antimony compounds continue to be a mainstay of therapy. We describe an Italian patient with an enlarging facial plaque that was found to be caused by leishmania and discuss the toxicity associated with therapy.