Prevalence of Cryptosporidium Parvum among Children in Iraq

Abstract

Cryptosporidiosis is a parasitic disease caused by an apicomplexan protozoa of. Cryptosporidium parvum is the specific infective agent in human . The present study aimed to search for the presence of C. parvumand to determine the prevalence of this parasite among children in Kut city, Iraq. Six hundred stool samples were collected from children less than twelve years old from October 2011 to May 2012. Stool samples were inspected by modified Ziehl-Neelsen acid fast stain and ELISA. Results indicated that 203 cases gave positive results (33.83 %) and 397 cases gave negative results (66.17%) with Ziehl-Neelsen acid fast stain . The higher infection, 115 (19.17%) appeared in age (<1) year while the lower infection 37 (6.17%) appeared in age (1-6) years. There was association between anemia 66.01% (134/203), Packed Cell Volume (PCV) 66.01% (134/203), White Blood Cells Count (WBC's) 66.01% (134/203) that showed increase in number, and infection with cryptosporidiosis, respectively. The high percentage of positive cases (100%) was recorded in microscopic examination compared to 72.5% (129/178) of positive cases detected by ELISA assay. The present study is the first record of cryptosporidiosis among children in Wasit Province, Iraq. It demonstrated clearly a high prevalence rate of C. parvum among children of less than 12 years old in Iraq. ELISA technique will be of great value in the rapid and accurate diagnosis of C. parvum in human fecal materials.