| Abstract Cryptosporidiosis caused by Cryptosporidium spp.
is an important parasitic disease that can be life-threatening for
children and immunocompromised patients. This systematic
review and meta-analysis was designed to determine the prevalence
rate of Cryptosporidium infection and related risk factors
among the Iranian general population. We searched electronic
databases including Google Scholar, PubMed, Science
Direct, Scopus and Proquest for articles in English and SID,
Magiran, IranMedex, and IranDoc for articles in Persian. Out
of 4816 studies identified in the electronic search, 94 articles
were eligible for inclusion in the systematic review and metaanalysis.
The prevalence rate of cryptosporidiosis by using the
random effect model among children, healthy people, and
gastroenteritis and immunocompromised patients in Iran was
estimated as 3.65, 2.94, 1.29, and 4.54%, respectively.
Findings of a phylogenetic analysis inferred by gp60 and
18S ribosomal RNA markers indicated that most of the infection
rate belonged to C. parvum (particularly subtype
IIaA15G2R1) and C. hominis among understudied groups.
The present study is the first systematic review and metaanalysis
providing a comprehensive view of the prevalence
of human cryptosporidiosis and its related risk factors in
Iran. It seems that the awareness of Cryptosporidium prevalence,
risk factors, and disease complications may be required
for developing effective strategies to prevent infection. |