Background and purpose: Iran is one of the endemic focuses of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in the world. The disease is commonly seen in some tropical regions of Kermanshah province (West of Iran). In this study, patients with CL were diagnosed and identified using RFLP-PCR and DNA sequencing.

Materials and methods: In this descriptive study all suspected cases of CL attended a clinic affiliated with Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences in 2015 were diagnosed by microscopic and molecular methods. The Leishmania species were identified by PCR-RFLP and genomic sequencing.

Results: There were 65 patients of whom 47 (72.3%) were detected as CL including 64.6% males and 35.4% females. Among the patients 49.2% were resided in Kermanshah, and 50.8% lived in other cities of the province. It was found that 47.7% of the patients had history of travel to other provinces in previous months. Leishman bodies were detected in 50.8% and 72.3% of the patients by microscopic observation and PCR technique, respectively. By RFLP-PCR, 14.9% and 84.1% of positive samples were identified as Leishmania tropica and Leishmania major, respectively. The PCR product sequences of 5 samples confirmed the results of PCR-RFLP in identification of the Leishmania species.

Conclusion: Leishmania major is the main cause of CL in Kermanshah province. PCR is believed to be more sensitive than microscopic method for detection of CL and RFLP-PCR is an appropriate technique for identification of Leishmania species.