Visceral leishmaniasis infection in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis treated with etanercept

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a severe disease that can develop in immunocompromised patients. Antitumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) treatment of rheumatoid arthritis can result in clinical benefits, but with an increased risk of opportunistic infections. Leishmania infection in patients treated with TNF-alpha antagonists is extremely rare; for this reason, we report a patient with VL after etanercept treatment who had an unfavorable outcome.