Toxoplasmosis seroprevalence in pregnant women who attended the Mar del Plata private hospital in the period 1999-2009

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is the most widespread parasitic zoonosis in the human population. The congenital form only occurs when women have their primary infection during pregnancy and transmit the parasite to the fetus through the placenta; consequently it is important to be aware of this prevalence in pregnant women. In Argentina, the prevalence varies from 18.33 % to about 65 %. The aim of the present work was to estimate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis and the titres of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in a population of pregnant women who attended the Hospital Privado de Comunidad (Mar del Plata, Argentina) between October 1999 and November 2009. A transversal study of prevalence for toxoplasmosis was carried out. The reviewed cohort was of 6140 pregnant women who attended this hospital in the aforementioned period. The sampling was performed during the first trimester of pregnancy. The presence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies was tested using indirect immunofluorescence and the results were analysed by chi-square tests. The prevalence found was 23.2 %, which indicates a significant decrease in time compared to a previous study from the same institution. This prevalence is similar to that found in Hospital Alemán in Buenos Aires (18.33 %), which has a similar socioeconomic population, and differs from that of public hospitals in our country, where the prevalence is between 40 and 65 %.