CRYPTOSPORIDIOSIS IN PATIENTS WITH THE HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS

The high opportunistic and severe life-threatening potential Cryptosporidium in immuno-compromised individuals have increased the importance of cryptosporidiosis as a global public. health problem. The prevalence of the parasite in patients infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and diarrhea is high, with a median of 32%. These patients are more, susceptible to the infection and species that are not usually infectious to hitmans. People with the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome are susceptible to a devastating form of cryptosporidiosis, manifested by chronic, voluminous, watery diarrhea, and can develop atypical extra-intestinal disease presentations. However; there is actually a marked variability in the clinical presentation, including asymptomatic infection. In general, the risk of infection, severity of illness, and development of unusual complications of cryptosporidiosis is proportional to the decrease of CD4+ cell numbers or function; severe life-threatening diarrhea is limited to patients with cell counts below 150 cells/ml. Symptoms may also be influenced by the genetic differences of the parasite. There is no reliable curative chemotherapy and no vaccines or immuno-therapeutics have been approved for the prevention or treatment of cryptosporidiosis in HIV infected patients. The best approach to prevention and therapy of the infection in these individuals is the maintenance of the immune system function by using the antiretroviral therapy that allows clinical recovery or parasite eradication.