Resumen

HERRER, Aristides y BLANCAS, Fortunato. Estudios sobre la enfermedad de Carrión en el valle interandino del Mantaro: I. Observaciones entomológicas. Rev. perú. med. exp. salud publica, 1960, vol.13, no.1-2, p.27-45. ISSN 1726-4634.

During the begining of 1959 an epidemic of "verruga peruana" or Carrion's disease took place in the Mantaro valley, near to Anco city. Entomological investigations carried out in connection with such epidemic revealed to exist in that region two species of sandfly, Phlebotomus pescei and P. bicornutus n. sp. On the other hand, the well known vector of Carrion's disease in Peru, P. verrucarum, was not found. Both species of sandflies of the Mantaro valley enter human dwellings and bite man, as weIl as some domestic and wild animals.  There is a remarcable difference in the altitudinal distribution of P. pescei and P. bicornutus in the Mantara valley. P. bicornutus is especially abundant in places of not too high altitude, being 2600 meters its upper limit of distribution; P. pescei, on the contrary, is rare bellow 2400 meters. This species is more abundant between 2600 and 3000 meters and its upper limit of distribution is around 3300 meters of altitude. The places where most cases of Carrion's disease were observed in the Mantaro valley during 1959, correspond in altitude to the P. pescei distribution; therefore, it is suggested that this sandfIy may be the vector of "verruga peruana" in this region. In the Mantaro valley many people live above 3000 meters of altitude and annualy descend, for a few weeks, to the endemic zone of "verruga peruana", where they acquiered the disease. In November, 1958, the Servicio Nacional de Erradicación de la Malaria sprayed dieldrin insecticide, in the human dwellings, up to 2500 meters in the Mantaro valley. Since Carrion's disease is endemic especially over 2500 meters of altitude, such application of insecticides does not protect the people from "verruga peruana" in this valley.