You are on page 1of 5

What is Crypto?

Where is it found?

What are the


symptoms?

Who is at risk?

How can it be

CRYPTOSPORIDIUM
KEY FACTS

removed from
drinking water?

Some key facts and figures relating to


Cryptosporidium and Cryptosporidiosis.
Please find a selection of key facts relating to crypto.
These are general facts and provided for information only, if in
doubt professional advice should always be sought.

PANTON MCLEOD
Water Quality Engineering
www.pantonmcleod.co.uk
@pantonmcleod
info@pantonmcleod.co.uk
October 2015

1 - What is cryptosporidium / crypto?


Cryptosporidium, or crypto as it is commonly called within the water industry is a
microscopic parasite.
Although microscopic, the parasite is relatively large, 3-6 microns in size, for reference
a human hair is 75 microns in width.
The parasite is protected by an outer shell that allows it to survive outside the host
body for long periods of time and makes it very resistant to chlorine-based
disinfectants.

2 - Where is crypto usually found?


Crypto is a parasite, parasites are organisms which live in or on another organism.
It lives in the intestine of infected animals and humans, and is found in their faeces.
Crypto is also found in water, food or soil contaminated by infected faeces.
Contaminated water may include water that has not been boiled or filtered, as well as
contaminated recreational water sources (e.g., swimming pools, lakes, rivers, ponds,
and streams).

3 - What happens if you ingest it?


If cryptosporidium is ingested, then the host is at risk of developing a diarrheal disease
known as cryptosporidiosis.
Cryptosporidiosis has become recognized as one of the most common waterborne
disease (from recreational water and drinking water) in humans.
It can affect all people but for those with weakened immune levels crypto can be
severe and even life-threatening.
Millions of parasites can be released in a single bowel movement which are then
passed on to others through accidental ingestion.

4 - What are the symptoms?


The most common symptom is diarrhoea but other warning signs include dehydration,
nausea, vomiting, fever and weight loss.
Some people with crypto will have no symptoms at all. While the small intestine is the
site most commonly affected, crypto infections could possibly affect other areas of the
digestive tract or the respiratory tract.

5 How long after infection do symptoms appear and how


long do they last?
Symptoms of cryptosporidiosis generally begin 2 to 10 days (average 7 days) after
becoming infected with the parasite.
In patients with healthy immune systems, symptoms usually last about 1 to 2 weeks.
The symptoms may go in cycles in which you may seem to get better for a few days,
then feel worse again before the illness ends.

6 Who is most at risk of exposure to Cryptosporidiosis?


People who are most likely to become infected with cryptosporidium include:

Children who attend day care centres, including diaper-aged children.


Child care workers, or parents of children attending day care centres.
People who take care of other people with cryptosporidiosis
Backpackers, hikers, and campers who drink unfiltered, untreated water
People who drink from untreated shallow, unprotected wells.
People, including swimmers, who swallow water from contaminated sources
People who handle infected cattle or other livestock.

Although crypto can infect all people, some groups are more likely to suffer serious
effects.

7 How is cryptosporidiosis diagnosed and then treated?


If you suspect that you may have cryptosporidiosis your health care provider will ask
you to submit stool samples to see if you are infected.
Most people who have healthy immune systems will recover without treatment but it is
recommended that adults drink 200ml of water after each bout of diarrhoea and
children be given plenty of fluids to replace those lost.
People who are in poor health or who have weakened immune systems are at higher
risk.

8 What was the largest known outbreak?


The 1993 Milwaukee cryptosporidiosis outbreak is the largest known outbreak.
Over the span of two weeks, 400,000 of an estimated 1.6 million residents in the
Milwaukee area (of which 880,000 were served by the malfunctioning treatment plant)
became ill with the stomach cramps, fever, diarrhea and dehydration caused by the
pathogen.
At least 104 deaths have been attributed to this outbreak, mostly among the elderly
and immunocompromised.

9 How can cryptosporidium risk be reduced in potable


water supplies?
It is considered good practice to choose prevention over treatment, therefore proactive
catchment management is the first line of defense.
The exclusion of livestock likely to harbour crypto from raw water catchment areas will
reduce the risk, although this can be difficult in some rural locations.
If crypto is likely to be found in raw water supplies, then filtration is with a certified 1micron absolute filter should prove effective.
This method does rely on ongoing maintenance to the filters as a breach of the filter
would create a water quality risk.

The insertion of a UV light rig within the treatment process can also be used to
inactivate crypto.
Where crypto is detected within pipework or storage tanks it can also be treated with
some chemical cleaning products.
Due to the thick outer shell of the oocysts chlorine based products are not effective
however specialist products such as Panton McLeod PM88 are lab proven to inactivate
crypto as they are capable of braking down this outer shell.

For more information about crypto follow the links below:

World Health Organisation


http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/70117/1/WHO_HSE_WSH_09.04_eng.pdf
Panton McLeod PM88 Chemical Cleaning Product
http://www.pantonmcleod.co.uk/products.php

You might also like