Profile of pregnant women and children treated at a reference center for congenital toxoplasmosis in the northern state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

• Published in: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Main Authors: Janer Aparecida Silveira Soares, Sílvio Fernando Guimarães Carvalho, Antônio Prates Caldeira
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2012
• Subjects: Toxoplasmose; Crianças; Epidemiologia; Transmissão; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0037-86822012000100011; https://doaj.org/article/7581c2faf3054bbca171daa29c5d4e81

INTRODUCTION: To describe the clinical and epidemiological profile of pregnant women and children treated at a reference outpatient clinic for congenital toxoplasmosis. METHODS: Pregnant women potentially exposed to Toxoplasma gondii were observed. Diagnoses were made using serologic tests compatible with acute toxoplasmosis. Children presenting with: Toxoplasma-specific antibodies (IgM or IgA or ascending IgG titers higher than maternal titers in the first 3 months of life) coupled with toxoplasmosis symptoms; intracranial calcifications (by transfontanelar ultrasound or cephalic segment tomography); or retinochoroiditis (by fundoscopy examination) in the first 8 months of life were also included in the study. RESULTS: Fifty-eight mother-child pairs were observed (mean age of the mothers was 22.1 years). Most patients lived in urban areas (86.2%) and had attended less than 8 years of school (51.7%). Diagnosis was made after birth in 19 (32.8%) children. Thirty-four (58.6%) women received some type of treatment during pregnancy. Most (72.4%) of the children did not present with clinical alterations at birth. The main findings were ophthalmological: 20 (34.5%) children with retinochoroiditis, 17 (29.3%) with strabismus, and 7 (12.1%) with nystagmus. Of the children with retinochoroiditis, 9 presented with subnormal vision. Ten (32.3%) out of 31 children presented with intracranial calcifications by cephalic segment congenital toxoplasmosis, and 9 (42.9%) children presented with delayed psychomotor development. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight a critical situation. Protocols for follow-up of pregnant women and their children must be created to improve medical care and minimize sequelae.