[Diagnosis of cryptosporidiosis: a comparative study on Ziehl-Neelsen and safranine stain methods].

Infection by cryptosporidium causes acute or chronic diarrhea in immunocompetent or immunosuppressed patients respectively. We compared the Ziehl-Nielsen and the safranine stains in 604 stool samples from children with acute diarrhea. Sensitivity for safranine (96%) and for Ziehl-Nielsen (88%) was not significantly different. Given the simplicity and low cost of the safranine stain, this is proposed as a routine method for the investigation of infection by cryptosporidium.