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Abstract
The primary objective of this cross-sectional study is to correlate the presence of Cryptosporidium and other gastrointestinal parasites with the presence of diarrhoea in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients. Stool samples from 96 HIV-seropositive cases were examined for non-opportunistic parasites using the direct and formol-ether concentration methods, while the modified Ziehl-Neelsen technique was used to detect Cryptosporidium spp. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was 54.2%. Other intestinal parasites detected included Ascaris lumbricoides (9.4%), hookworm (5.2%), Entamoeba histolytica (3.1%), Strongyloides stercoralis (1%) and Taenia spp. (1%). Infection in males was more common (68.2%) than in females (55.4%) but the difference was not statistically significant. There was a significant association between Cryptosporidium infection and CD4+ count (P=0.0001), with the highest parasite prevalence (90%) observed among patients who had the lowest CD4+ count (<200 cells/mm3). Forty-five (86.5%) patients with Cryptosporidium infection presented with diarrhoea and the difference between those with and without diarrhoea was statistically significant (P=0.0001). There was a statistically significant difference (P=0.0001) among the age groups, with the 41–50 group showing the highest prevalence (84.6%) of infection. Co-infection was observed in 13.5% of the patients. As no drug is currently available for the treatment of cryptosporidiosis, emphasis should be placed on educating HIV-infected individuals about prevention.