Enteric parasites and antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus in homosexual men with diarrhea

A total of 260 homosexual men with gastrointestinal illness, 77 of them with AIDS, were selected for a study of the prevalence of enteric parasites and its association with antibodies against human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV). HIV antibodies were demonstrated in the sera of all the AIDS patients and in 111 (60.7%) of the non-AIDS patients. In the AIDS patients, 39 (50.6%) of them had enteric parasites and 33 had a single parasite recorded. By contrast, 49 (26.8%) of the non-AIDS patients had enteric protozoa detected and 25 of them had a single parasite. The protozoa most frequently recovered from the non-AIDS and the AIDS patients were Endolimax nana and Cryptosporidium, respectively. These findings indicate that immune dysfunction in AIDS patients can enhance the colonization of parasites and alter the spectrum of the intestinal flora.