Abstract:

Objectives: Leukemic patients are at increased risk of severe infections with parasites. Moreover, intestinal parasites can lead to severe diarrhea in patients with immunosuppression. The purpose of this study is to decide intestinal parasitic infections and clinical aspects in leukemic patients. Methods: Analysis was done of all leukemic patients hospitalized between January 2007 and October 2015 retrospectively. Results: Ninety-one patients were evaluated. Intestinal parasites were diagnosed in nine (9.9%) patient. Cryptosporidium was the most frequently identified parasite, recovered from six specimens (6.6%), while Blastocystis (n=3) and Entamoeba (n=1) accounted for 3.3% and 1.1%, respectively. Cryptosporidium spp. and E. histolytica were detected together in one patient. Duration of diarrhea in patients with and without parasite were 16.1±9.3 and 7.9±2.9days, respectively (P=0.037). Abdominal cramps in patients with and without parasite were present in seven (77.8%) and 20 (24.4%) patients, respectively (P=0.002). In contrast, vomiting in patient with and without parasite were present in five (55.6%) and 81 (98.8%) patients, respectively (P<0.0005). Conclusion: Parasitic infections should be considered for differential diagnosis in leukemic patients with diarrhea. J Microbiol Infect Dis 2017; 7(2): 63-66

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