Treatment Modalities of Cryptosporidium Infection

Abstract

Immune status of infected patients is an important factor in recovery of cryptosporidiosis, the symptoms and signs usually disappear in less than 2 weeks without treatment in most people who have healthy immune system.   Treatment is only by supportive therapy like drinking plenty of fluids and electrolyte replacement with oral rehydration solutions to prevent dehydration, anti-nausea drugs, antiemetic drugs, and analgesic drugs may be required.  Although intravenous therapy may be necessary and nutritional support is probably beneficial.     On the other hand, immunocompromised patients, whose illness is fulminant and life-threatening, no agent or antidiarrheal compound offers clear benefit, so removal the exogenous causes of immunosuppression is essential for cure. There have been a large number of studies aimed at developing a satisfactory therapy for cryptosporidiosis, particularly in immunosuppressed patients. Due to failure of other therapeutic approaches, there have been several attempts at passive antibody-based immunotherapy for Cryptosporidium infections, but these have also had limited success. Only one therapeutic intervention that has a dramatic effect on cryptosporidiosis in AIDS patients is antiretroviral therapy leading to recovery of the CD4 count.