SUMMARYGiardia intestinalis infection is prevalent throughout the world and widely distributed in developing countries. In general, children display serious consequences to their state of health, including slow height-weight development; therefore, the main aim of this study was to determine the association between Giardia infection and the nutritional status of children who participate in the program of complementary feeding (Mejoramiento Alimentario y Nutricional de Antioquia (MANA) -Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar (ICBF)). A cross-sectional study examining the association of giardiasis with nutritional status was conducted. A total of 2035 children aged eight months to six years-old were studied. Data were collected using structured questionnaires, anthropometric measurements and laboratory analysis of blood and stool samples. Analysis of the results showed that 27.6% of children were infected with G. intestinalis, while 8.1% and 1.9% were mildly and significantly underweight, respectively, and 14.1% presented stunting. Giardiasis was statistically identified as a strong predictor of stunting in this study population.

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RESUMENObjetivo Describir un brote epidémico de enfermedad gastrointestinal en un grupo de 56 pacientes de Medellín, Colombia. Metodología En abril de 2002 se presentó un número inusitado de casos de diarrea y a partir del hallazgo de Cyclospora cayetanensis en uno de los pacientes, se recolectaron 56 muestras de materia fecal de igual número de individuos. Se realizó una encuesta clínico-epidemiológica, coprológico directo, concentración con formol-éter y coloración de Zielh Neelsen modificada. Además, se estudiaron por directo y Zielh Neelsen muestras de algunos alimentos para la búsqueda del parásito. Resultados Del total de pacientes evaluados, 55,4 % (31/56) fueron positivos para C. cayetanensis, de éstos, el 77,4 % (24/31) fueron mujeres, y el 83,9 % (26/31) pertenecía a la Universidad de Antioquia, de los cuales el 88,6 % eran empleados no docentes. No se encontraron diferencias significativas entre pacientes positivos y negativos para Cyclospora con respecto a las manifestaciones clínicas, excepto en la deshidratación que fue mayor en los pacientes con ciclosporidiasis. Sin embargo, se encontró una diferencia significativa con relación al consumo de ensaladas y jugos, la cual fue mayor entre los pacientes positivos que los negativos. Conclusión Se presentó un brote epidémico de C. cayetanensis en pacientes sintomáticos atendidos por el grupo GIEPI en abril de 2002.Palabras Clave: Ciclosporiasis, Cyclospora cayetanensis, diarrea, enteritis, Brote epidémico (fuente: DeCS, BIREME). ABSTRACT An outbreak of Cyclospora cayetanensis in Medellín, ColombiaObjective Describing an outbreak of gastrointestinal disease in a group of 56 patients from Medellín, Colombia.Rev. salud pública. 8 (3):258

Introduction: HIV infection is still a public health problem worldwide, and co-infections with other infectious agents, including intestinal parasites are of particular concern, mainly in developing countries, like Colombia. Objective: To conducte a cross-sectional research in patients attending an HIV care program in the province of Antioquia, given that intestinal prevalence studies on the HIV population are few in the country,. Material and methods: Stool samples from 192 patients were evaluated by direct wet mount and concentration; modified Ziehl Neelsen staining and agar plate culture. Univariate and correlation analyses were done to explore the association between socio-demographic, clinical characteristics and, parasitological data. Results: The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites in HIV positive subjects was 29.2% (56/192; 95%CI: 22.8% to 35.6%), being Entamoeba histolytica/dispar/ moshkosvkii 13.0% (25/192; 95%CI: 8.2% to 17.8%), and Blastocystis  12.0% (23/192; 95%CI: 7.4% to 16.6%) the most frequent. Opportunistic parasites like Cryptosporidium spp. and Cystoisospora belli were less prevalent, each one with 0.5% of positive samples (1/192; 95%CI: 0.1% to 1.5%). Commensal protozoa were also detected, with a prevalence of  18.8% (36/192; 95%CI: 13.3% to 24.3%). Most of the individuals in the study had a controlled viral load and an LTCD4 count greater than 200 cel/µL. A small percentage (9.3%) had diarrhea. Bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression showed that only age and having pets had a significant association with intestinal parasites in the studied cohort. Conclusions: Our results confirm that the population evaluated is at high risk of intestinal parasite infection, which highlights the need to include routine screening for gastrointestinal parasites to  provide prompt treatment and reduce possible complications.