[The detection of human cryptosporidiosis in Leningrad]

Stool specimens from 127 adults with gastrointestinal disorders, 357 persons engaged in a livestock farming in the district of Leningrad were examined for Cryptosporidium oocysts with the Ziehl-Neelson routine. Five positive cases were established among the latter cohort. Besides, the study conducted at the hospitals of Leningrad that enrolled 373 children aged under 7 years revealed oocysts in 10 of them. Two of the latters had high temperature (39-40 degrees C) during 3 and 5 days, respectively. Common clinical symptoms of cryptosporidiosis were vomiting, profuse diarrhea and weakness. Accompanied with the normalization of the stool the mean recovery time was 7.4 days. One child recovered 15 days after the disease onset. For the first time human cryptobiosis was detected in the USSR (Leningrad). Its sources and the routes of transmission still remain unknown.