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. 2014 Jul 24;8(7):e3042.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003042. eCollection 2014 Jul.

Burden of diarrhea, hospitalization and mortality due to cryptosporidial infections in Indian children

Rajiv Sarkar  1 , Jacqueline E Tate  2 , Sitara S R Ajjampur  1 , Deepthi Kattula  1 , Jacob John  1 , Honorine D Ward  3 , Gagandeep Kang  1
Affiliations

Burden of diarrhea, hospitalization and mortality due to cryptosporidial infections in Indian children

Rajiv Sarkar et al. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. .

Abstract

Background: Cryptosporidium spp. is a common, but under-reported cause of childhood diarrhea throughout the world, especially in developing countries. A comprehensive estimate of the burden of cryptosporidiosis in resource-poor settings is not available.

Methodology/principal findings: We used published and unpublished studies to estimate the burden of diarrhea, hospitalization and mortality due to cryptosporidial infections in Indian children. Our estimates suggest that annually, one in every 6-11 children <2 years of age will have an episode of cryptosporidial diarrhea, 1 in every 169-633 children will be hospitalized and 1 in every 2890-7247 children will die due to cryptosporidiosis. Since there are approximately 42 million children <2 years of age in India, it is estimated that Cryptosporidium results in 3.9-7.1 million diarrheal episodes, 66.4-249.0 thousand hospitalizations, and 5.8-14.6 thousand deaths each year.

Conclusions/significance: The findings of this study suggest a high burden of cryptosporidiosis among children <2 years of age in India and makes a compelling case for further research on transmission and prevention modalities of Cryptosporidium spp. in India and other developing countries.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Estimated annual number and risk of Cryptosporidium-associated diarrheal episodes, hospitalizations and deaths in Indian children <2 years of age.
The estimates are based on a population of 42,066,431 children comprising <2 years of age in India [per the 2011 Census of India data [30]].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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