Over 100 people have been sickened in an outbreak of diarrheal infection in Arizona as more than 20 water facilities have been contaminated with the virus, Arizona health officials said.

The Arizona Republic reported, according to the Maricopa County officials, splash pads, water parks and public pools in the Phoenix area may have been contaminated with the pool-linked gastrointestinal illness cryptosporidiosis, or crypto.

There is no reliable test for the disease in water, making the determination where the outbreak started difficult to find, the medical director for the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine said.

The Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) and the Environmental Services Department (MCESD) are responding to growing concerns since the microscopic parasite cryptosporidium was first reported August 4.

"Any facility in which an infected person swam prior to illness or while sick be treated for Crypto. MCESD is notifying the facilities that are affected and recommending that CDC guidelines for decontamination are being followed," Health authorities recommend.

Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine said in a statement, that, "Right now, this outbreak is community-wide and there is an increased risk to those swimming at recreational water facilities. The most important thing the public can do to prevent spread of this disease is to stay out of the water if you have diarrhea, until at least two weeks after symptoms resolve."

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