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Introduction: Toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis prevalent in one-third of the world's population, adversely affecting maternal-fetal health by causing varying degrees of damage to the fetus. Objective: To assess the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii IgG and IgM antibodies and associated risk factors in firsttrimester pregnant women in Cúcuta, Colombia, in 2018. Materials and Methods: Cross-sectional and correlational study in 111 women who voluntarily participated. Specific IgM and IgG antibodies were detected by luminescence immunoassay (LIA). Results: Total seropositivity for IgM and IgG was 19.8% and 35.1%, respectively, 11.7% was for IgM only, and 53.2% corresponded to the overall seronegativity rate for T. gondii. Risk factors (CI = 95%) such as undercooked meat consumption (54.1% of cases, OR = 1.8, p = 0.120), tap water consumption (48.6%, OR = 1.4, p = 0.421), and goat or cow raw milk consumption (39.6%, OR = 0.78, p = 0.553) were identified; in addition, living with cats (23.4%) was identified as a risk factor significantly associated with parasite seropositivity (OR = 2.8, p = 0.025). Discussion and conclusions: Our findings showed a possible risk of primary infection in more than half of the pregnant population, given the seronegativity against the parasite. A considerable frequency of suspected cases of very recent infection was also found. In addition to being associated with a previously recognized risk factor, this fact suggests the presence of other dietary risks that should be addressed through prevention strategies during prenatal care and the need to strengthen event surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii. The infection in human occurs accidentally by different transmission mechanisms: oral, congenital, blood transfusions, organ transplants and from laboratory accidents. In Venezuela, it has been reported that 60% of the population apparently healthy have the infection. Taking into account its prevalence was determined the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in female patients aged 14-44 years of the outpatient network Municipality Francisco Linares Alcántara, Maracay, State Aragua, Venezuela, implemented as methods of diagnosis the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Indirect Hemagglutination (HAI) in 90 patients. Obtaining as a result of the ELISA method, a seroprevalence 61% where 98% presented antibodies IgG and IgM antibodies 2%, by the HAI method, was found 41% where 100% showed IgG antibodies. By means of the chi-square test with a significance level of 95% and a p value =0.005, we identified no statistically significant associations between risk factors and infection. However the group with the highest frequency of antibodies anti-T. gondii was represented by ages >34 years, proving that the risk of acquiring the infection increases with age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonosis caused by Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan whose definitive hosts are cats, among them domestic cat, which can transmit the infection to humans. In Chile, there are no published studies on seroprevalence in people with occupational risk. Thus, this study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and associated risk factors in operators of a slaughter plant in Bío-Bío (Chile). Serum samples from 39 operators were collected and studied by chemiluminescence analysis in order to detect IgG and IgM antibodies, with a sensitivity and specificity of 93 and 96%, respectively. An epidemiological survey was conducted and odds ratio was calculated for the analysis of the variables of hygiene, food, and exposure. Evidence showed that 24 individuals had IgG antibodies for an apparent seroprevalence of 61.5%, while this was 0% for IgM. In addition, the highest seropositivity was observed in operators who did not use masks (64%) and did not disinfect the working material (100%), as well as in those who consumed undercooked meat (62.5%). Regarding exposure time, 72.7% was obtained for the group of more than 10 years, and 62.2% of seropositivity was found in those exposed between four and seven days a week. There were no significant differences for any of the analyzed variables (p > 0.05). The study concludes that there is a high seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in workers with occupational risk at the Bío-Bío slaughter plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxoplasmosis is one of the most frequent protozoonosis in the human being. The objective of this study was to determine toxoplasmosis seroprevalence in an infantile population from the Mara Municipality, State of Zulia. 119 serum samples from both sexes (53 male and 66 female) with ages between 4-13 years were studied. The toxoplasmic antibodies were determined by the indirect hemaglutination technique. Statistical analysis was done using the Chi square test and Spearman's correlation. General prevalence of the infection was 15.9%. The positive serum frequency was greater in the 10-13 year age range (8/25) with 32.0%. It was observed that the number of positive cases increased in relation to the age group. No statistically significant differences related to gender were observed; nevertheless, a greater positive tendency was observed for females in the 10-13 year group. The geometric average was 9.479. The range of positive titles was from 1:64 to 1:2.097.512; the lowest title was 1:64 with 5.26% (1/19) and the highest was 1:2.097.512 with 5.26% (1/19). Results indicate that this disease is frequent in this infantile population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human toxoplasmosis has worldwide distribution and its prevalence depends upon climatic, geographic, hygienic and cultural factors. Objectives: To know the toxoplasmosis seroprevalence among adult population from 18 to 45 years old and to know and to analyze by a questionnaire the ranking of risk factors of toxoplasmosis acquisition among those people. Material and methods. We performed a transversal serologic survey to determine the presence of anti-toxoplasma antibodies in a sample of 400 individuals of both sexes, between 18 and 45 years of age, from the metropolitan area of Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. Results: By using an ELISA test we detected lgG-antibodies and found an overall seropositivity of 20.5%. The seropositivity rate increased with the age of tested individuals. Conclusions: Our data show a similar, somewhat lower seropositivity (20.5 vs 24.8%) compared to that reported by the National Seropidemiologic Survey in 1992 for the state of Nuevo León. These preliminarily reported data belong to a larger survey for the identification of risk factors involved in the transmission of toxoplasmosis in a semi-desertic, urban area like that of Monterrey. Thus, besides the well known cat-related mechanisms of transmission, we also stress the need to recognize the potential role of some other mechanisms which sometimes go underestimated or unrecognized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]