Prevalence of Cryptosporidium Species in Children Referred to Central and Hospital Laboratories of Zabol City, South East of Iran

Background Cryptosporidiosis has a worldwide distribution, and is the commonest cause of diarrhea in children and immune compromised individuals. Since there is no data available on the prevalence of Cryptosporidium species (sp.) in Zabol city, thus this study was carried out to assess the disease prevalence and related factors influencing the disease. Materials and Methods In this cross-sectional study, 200 fecal specimens were collected from children referred to the Central or hospital labs in Zabol city, South East of Iran, during April 2014 to August 2016. Fecal examination was performed by staining with Ziel-Neelsen acid-fast to find oocysts of the parasite. The children were grouped according to the age, gender, kind of water supplies, and diarrheic and non-diarrheic condition. Data were evaluated using SPSS version 13.0 software. Results Among the children referred to the Central laboratory, 200 fecal samples from different age groups were collected. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium species was 9.7% which was higher in children under 4 years. There was a significant relationship between sources of water supply and diarrheic children infected with Cryptosporidium (P<0.05). Conclusion Cryptosporidiosis is the most infectious disease in Zabol city, especially in children. Healthy water supply significantly affects the disease prevalence.

Keywords:

Children , Cryptosporidium , Diarrhea , Education , Iran