ProtozoanparasitesCryptosporidiumGiardiaCyclospora.pdfVIP

Protozoan parasites (Cryptosporidium, Giardia, Cyclospora)1 Description Several species of parasitic protozoa are transmitted through water, with Giardia intestinalis and Entamoeba histolytica/dispar being among the most important intestinal parasites worldwide. Morbidity, and particularly mortality, rates for E. histolytica/dispar are high, especially in nonindustrialized countries. More infor- mation on Entamoeba can be found in Volume 2 of the WHO Guidelines for drinking-water quality. A wide variety of free-living amoebae occur in water, but only Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba spp. have been identified as pathogenic for man. N. fowleri may be present in thermally polluted waters and sporadically causes fatal primary amoebic meningoencephalitis; however, only one outbreak has been related to a drinking-water supply system (Marshall et al.,1997). Acan- thamoeba spp. can be found throughout the aquatic environment; these organ- isms cause sporadic cases of keratitis in wearers of contact lenses after exposure to contaminated recreational water and contact lens cleaning fluids (Marshall et al., 1997). Drinking-water taps were identified as the source of contamination when home-made lens-cleaning solutions were found to contain Acanthamoeba 1 This review was prepared by C.R. Fricker, Thames Water Utilities, Reading England; G.D. Medema, Kiwa NV, Nieuwegein, Netherlands; and H.V. Smith, Stobhill Hospital, Glasgow, Scot- land, with contributions from M. Abbaszadegan, American Water Works Services Inc., Belleville, IL, USA; J. Bartram, Water, Sanitation and Health, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzer- land; P. Berger, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA; D. Cun- liffe, Environmental Health Branch, South Australian Health Commission, Adelaide, Australia; I. Feuerpfeil, Institut für Wasser-, Boden- and Lufthygiene, Bad Elster, Germany; A.H.