Human cryptosporidiosis caused by Cryptosporidium parasite has been recognised worldwide as the most common cause of protozoal diarrhea leading to significant morbidity and mortality in industrialized nations and developing countries. However few epidemiological studies of the parasite has been conducted in this study area using immunoassay diagnostic tools. This study was a prospective cross sectional, hospital-based study carried out to detect the prevalence of Cryptosporidium species copro-antigens in humans in Sokoto state, Northwestern Nigeria using a commercially manufactured Cryptosporidium Copro-Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (Copro-ELISA) kit (Savyon™ Diagnostics Inc., Israel), which is 100% sensitive and specific for Cryptosporidium. Three hundred and sixty eight (368) human faecal samples were collected and analyzed, 61 (16.6%) were positive for the parasite. Children ≤5 years of age were found to have significantly (χ2= 7.587; p= 0.005) higher prevalence (28.1%) than older patients (12.5%). Symptoms including diarrhea (χ2= 8.590; p= 0.003), abdominal pain (χ2= 20.241; p= <0.0001) and fever (χ2= 5.444; p= 0.019) were demonstrated to be significantly associated with cryptosporidiosis. Cryptosporidium infection in Sokoto state had significant association (p< 0.05) with consumption of raw vegetables (χ2= 6.685; p= 0.0097), while those that consume the raw vegetables had 22.2% (45/203) prevalence against 9.7% (16/165) that did not. However, the results shows no significant difference between the prevalence of Cryptosporidium copro-antigens and the following variables in the study population; sex (χ2= 0.122; p= 0.730); educational background (χ2= 6.233; p= 0.101); stool consistency (χ2= 1.107; p= 0.293); water source (χ2= 4.326; p= 0.228); animal contact (χ2= 1.503; p= 0.220) and toilet system (χ2= 5.049; p= 0.080). These findings highlighted the presence of Cryptosporidium infection among humans in Sokoto state, Northwestern Nigeria.
