Adequacy of nutritional status and dietary intake of adult and elderly patients with American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis.

Background: This cross-sectional study describes the adequacy of nutritional status and food intake in patients with American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis and its relationship with the form of the disease: cutaneous or mucosal. Patients with mucosal have greater nutritional impairment associated with older age and symptoms such as odynophagia, dysphagia, and oropharyngeal lesions, which lead to reduced dietary intake and inadequate intake of micronutrients.

Objective: Patients with American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis often experience malnutrition, weight loss, and dehydration; however, their eating profile and the degree of interference of disease manifestations on food intake is not well understood. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the nutritional profile and food intake of patients with American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis before treatment initiation.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of adult and older patients with cutaneous and mucosal leishmaniasis treated at a reference center between 2011 and 2017. A nutritional consultation was conducted to collect anthropometric, biochemical, and dietary intake data (24-h dietary recalls), which were assessed for adequacy.

Results: Sixty-two patients were included, with a median age of 47.5 (35.0-60.5) years, 82.3% being men, and 59.7% presenting the cutaneous form of the disease. Approximately half of the participants (51.6%) were overweight; however, most had an inadequate intake of selenium (93.5%), calcium (91.9%), magnesium (83.9%), and fiber (66.1%). Patients with mucosal leishmaniasis showed greater nutritional impairment (lower body weight, arm muscle circumference, and serum albumin levels), which was associated with older age and symptoms such as odynophagia, dysphagia, and nasal obstruction, and insufficient zinc intake than those with cutaneous leishmaniasis (p<0.05).

Conclusion: Patients with mucosal leishmaniasis had greater nutritional impairment leading to reduced dietary intake and inadequate intake of micronutrients, which can negatively interfere with disease prognosis and prolong the healing process. Consequently, nutrient supplementation, a nutritional intervention, could increase the effectiveness of American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis treatment, by ensuring a good nutritional status, which is essential for tissue recovery.