LAUSR

Carrion’s disease is an illness native to Peru, found more commonly in the inter-Andean valleys between 500 and 3200 m above sea level. These conditions make it a perfect environment for Lutzomyia verrucarum, the main vector involved in its transmission. The etiologic agent is Bartonella bacilliformis, an aerobic, pleomorphic, flagellated Gram-negative bacteria. The illness presents with two different phases, an acute or hemolytic phase and an eruptive phase also known as Peruvian wart. Usually, after weeks or months of the acute phase, 10% of the patients will progress to the eruptive phase. During this phase, it is characteristic to find different skin lesions classified in three types: miliary, mulaire, and nodular. These lesions tend to be painless and are generally not associated with other symptoms.