"Surge in Sand Fly-Induced Skin Disease Cases Sweeps Across the U.S."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that leishmaniasis, a skin disease spread by sand flies, is spreading at low levels in the southern U.S., challenging the previous belief that it could only be acquired abroad. Recent research confirms that the parasite causing leishmaniasis, known as Leishmania mexicana, has been present in the U.S. since at least 2005. The disease has been circulating in south and central Texas for decades, but its range has been expanding northward in the past 10 years. Climate models suggest that over 12 million people in the U.S. could be exposed to leishmaniasis locally, and this number could double in the next 60 years. Researchers are urging doctors and patients to be aware of the disease and for textbooks to reflect its presence in the U.S.