en انگل شناسی Parasitology Research Article Research Article <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><span style="color:black">Background:</span></span></span></strong> <a name="_Hlk110942097"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a protozoan infection caused by a flagellated parasite complex known as <em>Leishmania </em>spp. </span></span></a><a name="_Hlk114590590"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">Iran is an endemic area for CL. </span></span></a><a name="_Hlk195088498"></a><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span style="background-color:aqua"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">The present study aimed to investigate the epidemiological factors and geographical distribution of CL in Southwestern Khuzestan using the GIS method.</span></span></span></span></span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">Method</span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">s:</span></span></strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""> <span style="background-color:fuchsia">In this cross-sectional study, <a name="_Hlk195116354">epidemiologic and demographic data </a>from 787 individuals affected by CL in Behbahan County, spanning the years 2002 to 2021, were collected.</span> Patient locations were plotted on a point shapefile of villages, towns, and cities in Behbahan County, and geographic data were analyzed using ArcGIS version 10. </span></span></span></span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">Results:</span></span></strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""> <span style="background-color:fuchsia">Out of the 787 studied cases, 512 (65%) were male. Lesions appeared in various regions of the body, with 41% of cases involving the hands. The highest annual incidence rate was recorded in 2009, at approximately 40 cases per 100,000 population, whereas the lowest incidence rate occurred in 2002, at 5.8 per 100,000 population. Noticeable variations in disease prevalence were identified among non-Iranian individuals, rural populations (including pastoral and peri-urban areas), males, and younger individuals. Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis indicated that the most affected areas were located in the central region (Behbahan or Markazi area) and the southern region (Zeydoon) of the mapped topography.</span></span></span></span></span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times="">Conclusion:</span></span></strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""> <a name="_Hlk111283875"><span style="background-color:fuchsia">The findings highlight the necessity of implementing effective prevention and control measures to alleviate the burden of CL in Behbahan County. These measures should include targeted health education campaigns and vector control strategies, with a particular focus on regions identified as high-prevalence areas through GIS topographic analysis.</span></a></span></span></span></span></p> Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL), Geographical Features, Geographic Information System (GIS), Epidemiology, Iran 0 0 http://mlj.goums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1758-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Kazem Alizadeh-barzian kazembarzian@yahoo.com 100319475328460032409 100319475328460032409 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Mohammad Amin Ghatee ghateea1980@gmail.com 100319475328460032410 100319475328460032410 No Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Yasuj University of Medical Sciences, Yasuj, Iran & Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Yasuj University of Medical Sciences, Yasuj, Iran Mehdi Jamshidi mehdian3@yahoo.com 100319475328460032411 100319475328460032411 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Mohamad sabaghan sabaghan.m@ajums.ac.ir 100319475328460032412 100319475328460032412 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Abolhasan Difrakhsh difrakhsh@yahoo.com 100319475328460032413 100319475328460032413 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Zahra Nikkhooy nikkhooyzahra@gmail.com 100319475328460032414 100319475328460032414 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Masoud Parash masoudparashmd@gmail.com 100319475328460032415 100319475328460032415 No Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran Ali Jamshidi jamshidiali91@yahoo.com 100319475328460032416 100319475328460032416 Yes Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran