Research on demographic, clinical and paraclinical aspects in pregnant women infected with Toxoplasma gondii

Andrei Csep; Luminița Ligia Vaida; Bianca-Maria Negruțiu; Bianca Ioana Todor; Claudia Teodora Judea-Pusta; Camelia Buhaș; Cristian Sava

doi:10.3892/etm.2021.11046

Research on demographic, clinical and paraclinical aspects in pregnant women infected with Toxoplasma gondii

Exp Ther Med. 2022 Feb;23(2):123. doi: 10.3892/etm.2021.11046. Epub 2021 Dec 7.

Authors

Andrei Csep¹, Luminița Ligia Vaida², Bianca-Maria Negruțiu², Bianca Ioana Todor², Claudia Teodora Judea-Pusta³, Camelia Buhaș³, Cristian Sava⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psycho-Neuroscience and Recovery, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Oradea, 410087 Oradea, Romania.
² Department of Dentistry, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Oradea, 410087 Oradea, Romania.
³ Department of Morphological Disciplines, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Oradea, 410087 Oradea, Romania.
⁴ Department of Medical Disciplines, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Oradea, 410087 Oradea, Romania.

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the Toxoplasma gondii protozoan parasite. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of acute toxoplasmosis or its presence in the medical history of 240 pregnant women, depending on age and geographical background. The second purpose was to analyze several medical aspects (clinical and paraclinical) in pregnant women with acute toxoplasmosis. The study identified several serological changes including positive toxoplasma IgM, IgG, and IgA antibodies. The chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) method was used to detect T. gondii-specific IgM and IgG antibodies and the enzyme immunoassay (EIA) method to detect T. gondii-specific IgA antibodies. Of the 96 pregnant women (40%) infected with T. gondii, approximately 1/3 had acquired acute infection and 2/3 had a history of prior acute infection (P<0.0001). No statistically significant differences according to age groups (P=0.9384) were found in terms of serological profile. The number of patients with negative serology was significantly higher in urban areas than in rural areas (P<0.0001). The highest incidence among the pregnant women with acute toxoplasmosis with a single chain of ganglia affected was represented by those with the involvement of cervical lymph nodes (75%), the difference compared to the involvement of other chains of ganglia being statistically significant (P=0.0087). All 35 pregnant women with acute toxoplasmosis tested positive for T. gondii-specific IgM antibodies. Most pregnant women with acute T. gondii infection (57.1%) tested negative for T. gondii-specific IgM antibody serum titres within 3-6 months of presentation. The difference compared to other intervals from the moment pregnant women sought care was statistically significant (P=00002). Only 80% of all pregnant women with acute toxoplasmosis tested positive for T. gondii-specific IgA antibodies. Pregnant women with acute toxoplasmosis have a 3.3 times higher risk of pregnancy loss.

Keywords: IgA antibodies; IgG; T. gondii-specific IgM; Toxoplasma gondii; lymphadenopathy; pregnant women.

Grants and funding

Funding: No funding was received.