Maternal and perinatal outcomes of visceral leishmaniasis (kala-azar) treated with sodium stibogluconate in eastern Sudan

Objective: To investigate maternal and perinatal outcomes when pregnant women with visceral leishmaniasis (VL, also known as kala-azar) are treated with the antimonial sodium stibogluconate. Method: Forty-two pregnant women with VL were treated with sodium stibogluconate at Gadarif Hospital, Gadarif, Sudan, and mother and child were followed up for 1 year. Results: The treatment began at a mean +/- SD of 24.4 +/- 9.2 weeks of pregnancy. None of the patients had malaria or HIV. Two (4.7%) who received the treatment in the first trimester had miscarriages; 4 (4.9%) died from hepatic encephalopathy during the second week of treatment; and 2 (4.7%) had preterm deliveries. One of the newborns had a myelomeningocele and died at 2 hours, and the other died from VL at 2 months. Conclusion: Preventive measures against VL should be employed in the region, and more research on VL and its treatment during pregnancy is needed. (C) 2009 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.