[Clinical profile of cryptosporidiosis in a pediatric hospital environment in Burkina Faso].

Data concerning Cryptosporidium parvum infection in Black Africa are highly fragmentary. A 12-month study was carried out on 1392 stool specimens from children under 36 months of age with (n = 756) or without diarrhea (n = 629) in the Pediatric Department of Bobo Dioulasso Hospital in Burkina Faso. In 558 children HIV blood tests were also performed. The phenicated fuchsin technique was used to identify Cryptosporidia oocysts. Results were positive in 72 of the 1392 stool specimens tested (5.2%) and in 59 of the 756 stool samples from children with diarrhea (7.8%). Oocysts were not detected in any child under the age of 6 months and the highest incidence of infection was between 6 and 23 months. Detection of oocysts during this year long study was significantly higher from April to June, which corresponds to the beginning of the rainy season in Burkina Faso. Occurrence of diarrhea was not significantly correlated with parasite density. Presence of oocysts was correlated with malnutrition (p < 0.01) and rotavirus infection (p < 0.05). Of the 558 children who underwent HIV testing, only one was positive. In contrast the incidence of HIV infections in the overall population tested was 7%. This study indicates that cryptosporidiasis is a major factor in development of diarrhea and dehydration in the pediatric hospital setting of Burkina Faso. Two other notable findings are that occurrence of cryptosporidiosis is closely linked to hygiene in the population but is not significantly correlated with HIV infection in the pediatric setting in Africa.