A comparative study of congenital toxoplasmosis between public and private hospitals from Uberlândia, MG, Brazil
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
; 99(1): 13-17, Feb. 2004. tab
Article
em En
| LILACS
| ID: lil-356436
Biblioteca responsável:
BR1.1
ABSTRACT
The main purpose of the present study was to examine if there is difference in terms of incidence rates of congenital toxoplasmosis among populations assisted in public and private hospitals from Uberlândia, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 805 serum samples from cord blood were collected, being 500 from public hospital and 305 from private hospital, and all patients answered a questionnaire about pregnancy and newborns. An indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was performed to detect IgG antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii and the positive samples were retested to verify the presence of specific IgM and IgA antibodies in a capture ELISA. We found significant differences among data from both hospitals with respect to maternal age, origin city, gestational age, number of visits to physicians during pregnancy, type of delivery, and birth weight. Seroprevalence of IgG antibodies against T. gondii for patients from public and private hospitals was 57.6 percent and 41.9 percent respectively, and this difference was statistically significant (P < 0.0001). In addition, the frequency of congenital toxoplasmosis measured by the presence of IgM and/or IgA antibodies toward T. gondii was exclusively located in samples from public hospital (0.8 percent), and no positive sample was seen in private hospital (0 percent). Considering that almost all babies suffering from congenital toxoplasmosis, if undiagnosed and untreated, will develop visual or neurological impairments by adulthood, the results presented herein emphasized the importance to accomplish screening programs for toxoplasmosis during pregnancy, particularly in the public hospitals, due to the expressive rate of congenital disease showed in the patients attended at these centers.
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Índice:
LILACS
Assunto principal:
Toxoplasma
/
Imunoglobulinas
/
Toxoplasmose Congênita
/
Hospitais Privados
/
Hospitais Públicos
Tipo de estudo:
Incidence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Animals
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Pregnancy
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
Assunto da revista:
MEDICINA TROPICAL
/
PARASITOLOGIA
Ano de publicação:
2004
Tipo de documento:
Article