SEROPREVALENCE AND CLINICAL CORRELATES OF TOXOPLASMA GONDII INFECTION AMONG INFANTS IN TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR:
Dr. Gohel Tejash,
Yamuna Kunj,
Opposite Lavhekar Hospital,
Kailash Nagar, Nanded-431605,
Maharashtra.
Email: goheltd@rediffmail.com      
       

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Toxoplasmosis is caused by the infection with protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. A cute infection in pregnant women may be transmitted to fetus and cause severe illness. Most infected new born have no symptoms at birth, but if left untreated serious clinical manifestation can develop during childhood and early adulthood. Because congenital toxoplasma infection does not usually produce recognizable sign of infection in infancy and non-specificity of the symptoms, we were concerned by the fact that most case remain untreated, therefore we have used IgM avidity ELISA for screening infants, and identify who should receive therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 90 infants were included in the study. The group consists of infants with mother of BOH, and clinical conditions suggestive of Toxoplasmosis. Blood sample collected from all these infants and were screened by ELISA for IgM antibodies. RESULTS: Among 90 infants 2 were seropositive for IgM toxoplasmosis, both presented with chorioretinitis. CONCLUSION: Congenital toxoplasmosis is a preventable disease and it emphasize the importance of early prenatal serological tests, and preventive measures when necessary, in order to avoid a dramatic fetal disease. It should be mandatory to screen every immune compromised patient, pregnant females and infants for toxoplasmosis, and initiation of judicious treatment on time can, thus be provided to prevent morbidity and mortality due to toxoplasmosis.

KEYWORDS: Toxoplasmosis, Infants, Serology, IgM ELISA.