Prevalence of cryptosporidium spp. infection among children admitted to hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan
Introduction: Cryptosporidium spp. is identified as an important cause of diarrhoeal morbidity and mortality worldwide particularly in children below five years of age and immunocompromised individuals. Infections are present among cattle and humans. Until now, there is no report on its prevale...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
Malaysian Medical Association
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/79592/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/79592/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/79592/1/79592_Prevalence%20of%20cryptosporidium%20spp_article.pdf http://irep.iium.edu.my/79592/2/79592_Prevalence%20of%20cryptosporidium%20spp_scopus.pdf |
| Summary: | Introduction: Cryptosporidium spp. is identified as an
important cause of diarrhoeal morbidity and mortality
worldwide particularly in children below five years of age
and immunocompromised individuals. Infections are
present among cattle and humans. Until now, there is no
report on its prevalence in humans in Kuantan. The aim of
this study is to record the prevalence and associated risk
factors of Cryptosporidium spp. infection among children
admitted to Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan (HTAA),
Kuantan.
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted among
children admitted to the Paediatrics ward in HTAA between
December 2017 and May 2018. Faecal samples were
examined using wet smear and Modified Ziehl-Neelsen
(MZN) staining techniques. Data on demography and
hygiene practices was collected using a pretested
questionnaire, and analysed using SPSS version 22.
Results: One hundred thirty five children (95.6% were of
Malay ethnicity) were included in the study. The overall
prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. infection was 25.2%.
The prevalence was slightly higher in females (28.1%) than
males (23.1%). The prevalence was higher than expected.
This study showed that some risk factors namely children’s
age and trash disposal methods were significantly
associated with Cryptosporidium spp. infection (p˂0.05).
Conclusion: Higher prevalence could possibly be due to an
outbreak of this infection or until now undetected. |
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