Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Gut logoLink to Gut
. 1998 Oct;43(4):476–477. doi: 10.1136/gut.43.4.476

Gastric involvement in AIDS associated cryptosporidiosis

P Rossi 1, F Rivasi 1, M Codeluppi 1, A Catania 1, A Tamburrini 1, E Righi 1, E Pozio 1
PMCID: PMC1727296  PMID: 9824572

Abstract

Background—Cryptosporidiosis has been shown to be a common cause of diarrhoea in both immunocompetent and immunosuppressed individuals. There are very few data on the distribution of Cryptosporidium parvum along the gastrointestinal tract. 
Aims—To evaluate the location of Cryptosporidium parasites in the digestive tract of patients with AIDS. 
Methods—Gastrointestinal localisation of C parvum was studied in 71 patients with AIDS who underwent upper and/or lower endoscopy with biopsy for chronic diarrhoeal illness and/or other gastrointestinal disorders of unexplained origin. 
Results—Twenty four individuals (33.8%) were positive for C parvum, of which 16 (88.9%) had parasites in the gastric epithelium. Most patients with gastric localisation of C parvum did not show specific symptoms indicating the presence of this parasite in the stomach. 
Conclusions—Gastric involvement in AIDS related cryptosporidiosis is more frequent than expected, but no clear correlation between gastric location and related clinical and pathological features was observed. 



Keywords: Cryptosporidium parvum; AIDS; gastric location

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (95.9 KB).

Figure 1 .

Figure 1

Open in a new tab

Patchy distribution of Cryptosporidium parasites (arrowheads) in the gastric mucosa (antrum): a parasitised gland is contiguous to free ones (haematoxylin and eosin, original magnification ×200). 


Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Besasso H. R., Macías J., Trombetta L. A., di Risio C. A., Argento R., Besuschio S. C. Gastritis erosiva asociada a criptosporidium en dos pacientes con SIDA. Acta Gastroenterol Latinoam. 1994;24(1):41–43. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Godwin T. A. Cryptosporidiosis in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome: a study of 15 autopsy cases. Hum Pathol. 1991 Dec;22(12):1215–1224. doi: 10.1016/0046-8177(91)90103-v. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Goodgame R. W., Genta R. M., White A. C., Chappell C. L. Intensity of infection in AIDS-associated cryptosporidiosis. J Infect Dis. 1993 Mar;167(3):704–709. doi: 10.1093/infdis/167.3.704. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Greenberg P. D., Koch J., Cello J. P. Diagnosis of Cryptosporidium parvum in patients with severe diarrhea and AIDS. Dig Dis Sci. 1996 Nov;41(11):2286–2290. doi: 10.1007/BF02071413. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Jautzke G., Niedobitek F., Arasteh K., Bergemann W. Kryptosporidien in Biopsien aus dem Magen-Darm Trakt. Pathologe. 1986 Sep;7(5):302–303. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Kotler D. P. Gastrointestinal manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus infection. Adv Intern Med. 1995;40:197–242. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Nuñez M. R., Sakai P., Ishioka S., Laudanna A. A. Gastroduodenite erosiva associada a Cryptosporidium num paciente com síndrome de imunodeficiência adquirida. Rev Hosp Clin Fac Med Sao Paulo. 1990 Jul-Aug;45(4):188–189. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Ventura G., Cauda R., Larocca L. M., Riccioni M. E., Tumbarello M., Lucia M. B. Gastric cryptosporidiosis complicating HIV infection: case report and review of the literature. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 1997 Mar;9(3):307–310. doi: 10.1097/00042737-199703000-00017. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Gut are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES