The prevalence of cryptosporidium among children hospitalized because of gastrointestinal symptoms and the efficiency of diagnostic methods for cryptosporidium

Cryptosporidiumis a parasite that causeswaterydiarrhea among both children and adults.However, because many physicians do not routinely ask for Cryptosporidium diagnostic test, cryptosporidiosis prevalence is likely underestimated. The current study investigated the prevalence of cryptosporidiosis among children admitted to the hospital with gastrointestinal symptoms. Stool sample was collected from each child and subjected to routine microbiological culture. Cryptosporidiumpresencewas tested by three differentmethods: Real-time PCR (RT-PCR), quick antigen, andmicroscopic examination with acid-fast staining. Each positive specimen was further tested with BioFire FilmArray Multiplex PCR (bioMérieuxSA,Marcy-l'Etoile, France) to determine thatCryptosporidiumis the only pathogen in the sample.Demographic andepidemiological datawere collected fromthe patients'medical records.Of 291 patient stool samples, ninewere positive for Cryptosporidiumhominis or Cryptosporidiumparvum. The average age of the nine Cryptosporidium-positive cases was 2.3 years, lower than the average ageof the studypopulation (4.2years). Of thepositive cases, 66.7%wereArabs and33.3% were Jews. The main complaint of children with Cryptosporidium was diarrhea. Regarding the laboratory methods for Cryptosporidium identification, of the positive samples, 100% (9/9) were identified by RT-PCR, 88% (8/9) were positive by antigen test, and only 67% (6/9) were positive by microscopic examination with acid-fast staining. Because of the low incidence of Cryptosporidiumamong patients in our facility, the prevalence of cryptosporidiosis still cannot be established. Nevertheless, among the other pathogens found in stool samples, Cryptosporidium is the second leading cause of hospitalization due to gastrointestinal disease in children in our area.