Prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in children and the elderly in southwestern Iran

AIM: The current study investigated the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. among children under 6 and adults over 60 years of age with diarrhea in the southwest of Iran. BACKGROUND: Cryptosporidiosis is an opportunistic parasitic infection caused by the species Cryptosporidium that causes gastrointestinal complications and diarrhea. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Khuzestan province between January 2020 to December 2020. Out of 350 patients referring to medical centers with clinical signs of diarrhea, 57.4% were under six years of age and 42.6% were more than 60 years old. Fecal samples were examined using Modified Ziehl-Neelsen (MZN) staining and nested-PCR techniques. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. infection in the study population was 0.9% as determined by microscopic and molecular methods (3/47). CONCLUSION: The study results confirm the prevalence of parasitic infections as reported in previous studies in other regions of Iran. Preventive health measures are necessary.