DOI: 10.2807/1560-7917.es.2026.31.32.2600605 ISSN: 1560-7917
Cluster of imported cutaneous leishmaniasis due to Leishmania major among travellers returning from central Tunisia, France, October 2025 to May 2026
Morgane Andreoletti, Emilie Guemas, Eléna Charpentier, Judith Fillaux, Alexis Valentin, Pamela Chauvin, Antoine Berry, Xavier IriartBetween October 2025 and May 2026, 28 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania major were identified at Toulouse University Hospital, France, contrasting with fewer than three cases diagnosed annually in 2019–2024. Epidemiological investigations linked 24 cases to recent travel to Tunisia, with 19 reporting exposure in the governorate of Sidi Bouzid, endemic for zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis. These findings suggest increased transmission in central Tunisia and reinforce the need for surveillance of imported leishmaniasis in Europe.