Prevalence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in vegetables in Iran: a nineteen-years meta-analysis review

Ehsan Javanmard; Elnaz Sadat Mirsamadi; Meysam Olfatifar; Erfan Ghasemi; Fatemeh Saki; Hamed Mirjalali; Mohammad Reza Zali; Panagiotis Karanis

doi:10.1007/s40201-020-00493-w

Prevalence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in vegetables in Iran: a nineteen-years meta-analysis review

J Environ Health Sci Eng. 2020 Jun 18;18(2):1629-1641. doi: 10.1007/s40201-020-00493-w. eCollection 2020 Dec.

Authors

Ehsan Javanmard¹, Elnaz Sadat Mirsamadi², Meysam Olfatifar³, Erfan Ghasemi⁴, Fatemeh Saki⁵, Hamed Mirjalali¹, Mohammad Reza Zali³, Panagiotis Karanis^{6

7}

Affiliations

¹ Foodborne and Waterborne Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
² Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
³ Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁴ Department of Biostatistics, Faculty of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁵ Department of Geography, Faculty of Teacher Education, Farhangian University, Alborz, Iran.
⁶ Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
⁷ Department of Basic and Clinical Sciences, Nicosia University Medical School, 2408 Nicosia, Cyprus.

Abstract

Cryptosporidium and Giardia are two major protozoa reported from vegetables and environment. The prevalence of these parasites supposes to be different regarding the climate zones. This review aimed to evaluate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in vegetables according to the major climate zones in Iran. The results showed pooled prevalence 7% (95% CI: 2%, 14%) and 4% (95% CI: 3%, 6%) for Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia spp., respectively. The prevalence of Giardia spp. in mountain, desert and semi-desert, and Mediterranean regions was 4% (95% CI: 2%, 6%), 5% (95% CI: 3%, 8%) and 7% (95% CI: 1%, 18%), respectively. Cryptosporidium spp. was reported 8% (95% CI: 0%, 65%), 6% (95% CI: 0%, 18%) and 4% (95% CI: 0%, 77%) from mountain, desert and semi-desert, and Mediterranean climate zones, respectively. This review suggests the higher prevalence of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in Mediterranean and mountain regions, respectively.

Keywords: Climate conditions; Cryptosporidium; Giardia; Meta-analysis; Systematic review; Vegetable farms.

Publication types

Review