Studies in leishmaniasis in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan XII. Attempts to find a reservoir host

Certain features of the epidemiology of Sudan kala-azar suggest that the infection may be maintained by some alternative or reservoir host in the absence of man. Casual leishmania infection has been found in a horse, a monkey, and possibly in a fox, but no animal reservoir has been identified although many animals have been examined. Canine leishmaniasis has not been found in the Sudan but, in my opinion, its absence has not yet been established.More work is required in the Tapotha area. Subjects of post kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis may provide a human reservoir of infection, but this is unlikely to be the complete explanation of leishmaniasis in the Sudan.