A review of cryptosporidiosis in Egypt.

Cryptosporidiosis, a parasitic zoonosis, while typically a short-term infection, has a global distribution and can cause severe illness in children and other vulnerable populations. In order to inform local and regional public health personnel and providers, the authors conducted a comprehensive review of Cryptosporidium parvum (Cp) epidemiology in Egypt to establish what is known, identify critical knowledge gaps, and develop a basis for future directions in mitigating the burden associated with this illness among Egyptians and similar countries. A total of 61 published studies between 1985 & 2006 were reviewed. Nineteen studies examined immunocompetent individuals with diarrhea presenting to inpatient or outpatient clinics with a Cp prevalence ranging from 0% - 47% (median 9%, IQR 3-15%). Identified risk factors, at risk populations, ecology, environmental findings, as well as a quality assessment of the published literature are discussed. The building blocks are in place to design studies aimed at defining the disease, societal burden and evaluating public health interventions aimed at disrupting water and zoonotic transmission modalities using the most current molecular techniques. Cp diarrhea is but one of the many causes of diarrhea among Egyptians, but efforts to control this disease should also serve well to mitigate a number of infectious causes of diarrhea and given the track record of previous work hopping to see advances in the near future.