Bacterial and cryptosporidial infection as the cause of chronic diarrhoea in patients with liver disease in Nepal.

Chronic diarrhoea is common in patients with liver disease in Nepal. It is often seen in patients with alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and those with obstructive lesions of the hepatic portion of the inferior vena cava. To assess the role of bacterial and parasitic infection in patients with chronic diarrhoea, microscopic examination and culture of the stool were done in 30 cases. Pathogenic bacteria were isolated in 23 (76%), Yersinia sp was isolated in 9 (26%), Klebsiella and Shigella sp. in 3 each and Listeria sp in 1 patient. Oocysts of Cryptosporidium was demonstrated in the stools of 6 (20%) patients.