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Toxoplasma gondii as a Risk Factor for Early-Onset Schizophrenia: Analysis of Filter Paper Blood Samples Obtained at Birth
- Source :
- Biological Psychiatry. 61:688-693
- Publication Year :
- 2007
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2007.
-
Abstract
- Background Infections during fetal life or neonatal period, including infections with Toxoplasma gondii, may be associated with a risk for schizophrenia and other mental disorders. The objectives of this study were to study the association between serological markers for maternal and neonatal infection and the risk for schizophrenia, related psychoses, and affective disorders in a national cohort of newborns. Methods This study was a cohort-based, case-control study combining data from national population registers and patient registers and a national neonatal screening biobank in Denmark. Patients included persons born in Denmark in 1981 or later followed up through 1999 with respect to inpatient or outpatient treatment for schizophrenia or related disorders (ICD-10 F2) or affective disorders (ICD-10 F3). Results Toxoplasma gondii immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels corresponding to the upper quartile among control subjects were significantly associated with schizophrenia risk (odds ratio [OR] = 1.79, p = .045) after adjustment for urbanicity of place of birth, year of birth, gender, and psychiatric diagnoses among first-degree relatives. There was no significant association between any marker of infection and other schizophrenia-like disorders or affective disorders. Conclusions Our study supports an association between Toxoplasma gondii and early-onset schizophrenia. Further studies are needed to establish if the association is causal and if it generalizes to cases with onset after age 18.
- Subjects :
- Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Pediatrics
Denmark
Population
Antibodies, Protozoan
Community Health Planning
Cohort Studies
Neonatal Screening
Pregnancy
Risk Factors
Confidence Intervals
medicine
Animals
Humans
Risk factor
Psychiatry
education
Biological Psychiatry
Retrospective Studies
education.field_of_study
Mood Disorders
Infant, Newborn
Case-control study
Odds ratio
medicine.disease
Neonatal infection
Schizophrenia
Case-Control Studies
Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic
Female
Age of onset
Psychology
Toxoplasma
Cohort study
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 00063223
- Volume :
- 61
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Biological Psychiatry
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....799bc2dcb6c21130fcb45c04e25a3809