Despite the high incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Afghanistan, there is a little information concerning epidemiological status of the disease and phylogenetic relationship and population structure of causative agents. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and distribution of CL cases and investigate the Leishmania tropica population structure in rural districts of Heart province in the West of Afghanistan in comparison to neighboring foci. Overall, 4189 clinically suspected CL cases from 177 villages (including 12 districts) in Herat province were enrolled in the referral laboratory of WHO sub-office in Herat city from January 2012 to December 2013.
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