Three decades of clinical trials on immunotherapy for human leishmaniases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Current treatments for leishmaniases are not satisfactory, thus alternatives are needed. We searched for clinical trials with immunotherapeutic approaches for patients with leishmaniasis. Out of 205 articles, 24 clinical trials were selected, and eight submitted to meta-analysis. A reduction in healing time was observed in patients with tegumentary leishmaniasis treated with pentavalent antimony plus granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, and therapeutic vaccines. Overall meta-analysis indicated that immunotherapy associated with the standard chemotherapy generated a significantly reduced risk of treatment failure than the pentavalent antimony alone (p = 0.03). Our review confirmed the efficacy of immunotherapies for the treatment of cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis and highlighted the importance of clinical trials using immunotherapies for leishmaniases.