الفهرس 
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Abstract
Cryptosporidium spp. is a pathogen with a worldwide distribution and predicted to be
the highest in developing countries especially in children. Diarrhea caused by
Cryptosporidium spp. in childhood may be associated with subsequent impaired physical
and cognitive development. Epidemiological studies have indicated that the main routes of
transmission of Cryptosporidium are human–animal contact, person-to-person and
waterborne. In developing countries cryptosporidiosis represent up to 15% of
gastrointestinal diseases among children and seroprevalence rates are generally in the 25%
to 35% range and often 2 to 3 times higher. Those rates suggest that infection can be more
common than surveys of fecal oocysts excretion demonstrate, as oocysts may be shed
sporadically.
The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in
infantile diarrhea. It was carried out in two children’s hospitals affiliated to the Ministry of
Health in Alexandria (Winget and El-Anfoshy Hospitals) during the years (2006-2008).A
total of 380 stool samples were collected from infants aged two years or younger from both
sexes and suffering from a diarrheal attack.
All cases were subjected to the following:-
1. An interviewing questionnaire designed to collect data from both mothers of the target
infants and hospital’s records. It included items regarding; host factors such as age,
sex, residence, order of infant in family, feeding pattern, socioeconomic level and
environmental factors as source of water supply, contact with animals and sanitation
facilities. History of diarrhea, duration, other family members with diarrhea and
presenting symptoms were recorded.
2. Stool examination of one fresh stool sample collected from each diarrheic child. The
sample was subjected to the following:
a. Macroscopic examination for color, odor and consistency.
b. Preservation using Sodium acetate-acetic acid-formalin preservative followed by
formol-ether concentration sedimentation technique.
c. Staining by Modified Ziehl Neelsen acid-fast and Trichrome stains.
Results obtained from the study can be summarized as follows:
• The prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. infection among diarrheic infants in
Alexandria was 46.1%. .
• Most cases (72.6%) had a mild intensity of infection while moderate and heavy
infections were detected among 22.3% and 5.1% respectively.
• Concerning hosts factors no statistically significant difference was recorded between
males and females while the age was a significant risk factor for cryptosporidiosis
where the infection rate increased by age. It was lowest among infants aged less than six
months (34.5%) and peaked to 62.0% among those aged one to two years. Infection was
higher among residents of urban communities rather than rural communities (47.2%
versus 39.7%).