1 Introduction Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a vector-borne parasitic disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, transmitted through the bite of infected female sandflies (Rafique et al. 2023; Khattak et al. 2025). It represents a significant public health concern in many tropical and subtropical regions, including Pakistan, where ecological, demographic and socio-economic factors contribute to its heterogeneous distribution (Lu et al. 2024).