ALS Environmental are proud to announce that we are now able to analyse samples for Cryptosporidium and Giardia at our Wakefield laboratory.

Cryptosporidium is a waterborne parisitic human pathogen that can cause Cryptosporidiosis, an infection that causes respiratory and gastrointestinal illness. Cryptosporidiosis can be a serious, short term infection and can be recurrent in immuno-compromised hosts and may become life-threatening in severe cases.  

Giardia are a parasite that colonise and reproduce in the small intestines causing giardiasis. The symptoms of this includes violent sickness, diarrhoea, and stomach cramps. This can lead to dehydration and malnutrition, and can be severe in immuno-suppressed individuals. 

Offering this analysis in two of our core UK sites will significantly increase our capacity and availability for this type of testing, and reinforces our contingency for nationwide coverage.

For more on our Cryptosporidium & Giardia analysis, please click here 

We have DWTS (Drinking Water Testing Specification) and UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service) accreditation for Cryptosporidium and Giardia analysis at both the Coventry and Wakefield sites. ALS Environmental also provide Cryptosporidium identification as standard as part of the test. This categorises any isolated Cryptosporidium into Cryptosporidium parvum or hominis and other genotypes. 

Wakefield Microbiology, Cryptosporidium & Logistics Manager, Christopher Ulph, comments:

ALS Environmental continues to expand its capacity and scope by being able to offer Cryptosporidium and Giardia analysis at our Wakefield site, this ensures we can provide the best service to our clients across the UK.

Healthcare facilities can be susceptible to these types of infections due to the vulnerability of the patients. Cryptosporidium and Giardia analysis are just some of the tests ALS are able to analyse for our healthcare customers. ALS Environmental have an extensive offering in this area, including Legionella, Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, and ESKAPE Pathogens. MALDI-ToF technology can provide rapid identification of these types of bacteria including many others. MALDI-ToF identification can reduce the waiting time for confirmations from days to minutes for our customers when fast action is essential. 

Click here to download our technical datasheet on Cryptospordium and Giardia.

For more on Cryptosporidium analysis, ESKAPE Pathogens, Legionella testing and MALDI-TOF confirmation, or to request a quotation, please contact us or call us on 02476 421 213.