Toxocara spp. seroprevalence in pregnant women in Brasília, Brazil

• Main Authors: Lívia Custódio Pereira, Guita Rubinsky Elefant, Yanna Medeiros Nóbrega, Tamires Vital, Nadjar Nitz, Lenora Gandolfi, Riccardo Pratesi, Mariana Hecht
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT)
• Series: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Subjects: Toxocara spp; Pregnancy; Animal contact
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0037-86822016000500641&lng=en&tlng=en
• ISSN: 1678-9849

Abstract INTRODUCTION: The impact of gestational toxocariasis is an understudied topic on female reproductive health. We estimated anti-Toxocara IgG prevalence among pregnant women in Brasília, Brazil, and investigated the association of the infection with history of abortion and contact with pets. METHODS: Infection was diagnosed using ELISA with excretory/secretory antigens. Participant information was obtained via questionnaires. RESULTS: Of 311 pregnant women, 23 were anti-Toxocara IgG positive. Twenty-two percent of anti-Toxocara IgG-positive participants and 26% had previously miscarried. Previous contact with pets was associated with higher toxocariasis prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: A direct relationship between toxocariasis and contact with pets was observed, but there was no relationship with the miscarriage prevalence.