Burden of Diarrhea,Hospitalization and Mortality Due to Cryptosporidial Infections in Indian Children

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of cryptosporidiosis in resource-poor settings is not available.methodology/principal findings:we used published and unpublished studies to estimate the burden of diarrhea,hospitalization and mortality due to cryptosporidial infections in indian children.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.