Prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection and diarrhoea in Nepal

Three hundred and fifty-four soft, loose or watery stool specimens from patients with acute diarrhoea were screened for the presence of Cryptosporidium oocysts. A modified Ziehl Neelsen with DMSO staining method was used for detecting Cryptosporidium oocysts in the stool samples. The oocysts were identified in 24 (6.8%) of the samples, while 46 samples (13%) showed mixed infections. Children aged between 2 and 10 years were mostly infected by this parasite, while infection was more prevalent in females than in males for all the age groups. These findings suggest that Cryptosporidium is one of the important aetiologic agents of diarrhoea in this population and should be looked for during laboratory investigation of diarrhoeal stool samples.