Clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of diarrhea caused by Cryptosporidium

: During a 28 month period, 6336 fecal samples from 5845 inpatients or outpatients with acute gastroenteritis were studied; 850 samples from individuals without diarrhea were evaluated as controls. Cryptosporidium oocysts were stained with a technique for acid-alcohol resistance, and the parasite was found in 40 patients with diarrhea (0.7%) and in one healthy control (0.1%). All patients had diarrhea at the time of diagnosis; abdominal pain and vomit were less common. All patients except two were below ten years of age. There were no definite seasonal differences in the incidence of Cryptosporidium diarrhea although there was a small predominance in the last summer and initial autumn months. Three patients required spiramycin therapy; the diarrhea disappeared in all cases.