Prevalence of intestinal infection due to Cryptosporidium species among Taiwanese patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection

Background/Purpose: Cryptosporidiosis causes significant morbidity and mortality in human immunodeficiency virus (HfV)-infected patients who do not receive highly active antiretroviral therapy. Related data on cryptosporidiosis in Taiwanese HIV-infected patients are very limited. This study assessed the prevalence of intestinal infection due to Cryptosporidium spp. among Taiwanese patients with HfV infection. Methods: This retrospective review included 1044 patients with HfV infection treated between June 1994 and June 2004. Intestinal colonization due to Cryptosporidium spp. was identified by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphisin of stool specimens collected from 332 of the HIV-infected patients without gastrointestinal symptoms, 90% of whom were receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy. Results: Five out of 1044 (0.5%) HIV-infected patients had a diagnosis of intestinal cryptosporidiosis by endoscopic biopsy or examinations of stool specimens. Intestinal colonization due to Cryptosporidium spp. was found in four of 332 (1.2%) asymptomatic HIV-infected patients between 2001 and 2003; two were due to C. hominis, and one each were due to C. felis and C. meleagridis. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the prevalence of intestinal colonization due to Cryptosporidium is low among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan.