Eligio-García L, Cano-Estrada A, Cortés-Campos A, Medina-Sansón A, Jiménez-Cardoso E

Language: English
References: 16
Page: 26-30
PDF size: 128.15 Kb.

ABSTRACT

Background. The phylum Microsporidia includes obligate intracellular parasites that affect several hosts. The most frequent genera to affect humans are Enterocytozoon and Encephalitozoon. Microsporidium is considered an opportunistic parasite in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients and have become an important health problem. The aim of this study was to identify Microsporidium spp in fecal samples of patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), with and without diarrhea, at different treatment stages.
Methods. Seventy seven samples from children ‹12 years old with diagnosis of ALL were analyzed by the Faust coproparasitoscopic method, Ziehl-Nielsen, trichrome and calcofluor staining methods and polymerase chain reaction.
Results. Results showed that 16/77 (20.77%) children presented Microsporidium and there was no relationship between microsporidial infection and diarrhea. Polymerase chain reaction was more effective than analysis by light microscopy of staining samples in the identification of the parasite.
Conclusions. This work emphasizes the importance of microsporidiosis as an emerging infection in patients with ALL undergoing chemotherapy, increasing the additional clinical complications of leukemia.

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