Toxoplasma gondii in women of childbearing age and during pregnancy: seroprevalence study in Central and Southern Italy from 2013 to 2017

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide health problem. Infection in pregnant women can result in severe fetal morbidity or in subclinical neonatal infection; most subclinical cases develop ocular and neurological sequelae. The purpose of this serological study was to assess the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in two populations of women of childbearing age in Siena (Tuscany, Central Italy) and Bari (Apulia, Southern Italy) between 2013 and 2017 and in a group of pregnant women in Bari in 2016–2017. Serum samples were tested for the presence of specific anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibodies by a commercially available ELISA test. The percentage of seropositive subjects in Bari was significantly higher than in Siena (22.4% vs. 12.4%) and an age-related trend was observed. A low prevalence of T. gondii infection (13.8%) was observed among the pregnant women tested. In addition to showing a significant difference between Central and Southern Italy, this study provides updated data on T. gondii seroprevalence in women during childbearing age and pregnancy. The results confirm a trend toward a decrease, especially in younger people and pregnant women.

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection among women of childbearing age in an endemic region of Romania, 2016–2018

“…This study demonstrated the presence of T. gondii IgG antibodies in serum samples of 41.16% of women of childbearing age living in Arad county, a well-known endemic area of Romania. The seroprevalence was higher than that reported by other European investigators: 24.1% in Northern Kosovo and Metohija [ 22 ], 22.3% in Italy [ 5 ], 22% in Portugal [ 7 ], and 29.1% in Croatia [ 25 ]. The differences in seroprevalence of T. gondii IgG antibodies between countries can be explained by different nutritional habits, as well as sociodemographic and cultural factors [ 17 , 19 ].…”

Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence among pregnant women in Rabat, Morocco

“…This could be explained by the fact that Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria share the same culinary habits, cultural habits, and climatic conditions. However, the results of other surveys show a lower and higher prevalence in different areas in Africa, in Europe, and in Asia: 27% in Sudan [ 17 ], 35.6% in Ethiopia [ 18 ], 44% in Tanzania [ 19 ], 47% in Benin [ 20 ], 13.8% in Italy [ 21 ], 31.5% in Austria [ 22 ], 55.8% in Romania [ 23 ], 31% in Turkey [ 24 ], 33% in Iran [ 25 ], 34.5% in Pakistan [ 26 ], 82.6% in Lebanon [ 27 ], and 35.8% in Peru [ 28 ]. This variation in the rate of T. gondii infection between countries and regions could be attributed to dietary habits, health standards, lack of awareness of disease transmission, and the socioeconomic level.…”

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii among healthy blood donors in two locations in Tunisia and associated risk factors

“…In the same context, a study carried out in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, proved that seroprevalence decreases with increasing age [35]. However, several studies have shown that the infection rate increases with age, due to high exposure to sources of infection [4,8,12,28]. Contrarily, research performed by Fakhfakh and Elsheikha did not find any correlation between the presence of T. gondii antibodies and age [9,11].…”