AUTHOR=Pereira Edlayne Larissa Gretter Machado , Ferreira Isabella Braghin , Victorino Roberta Brinholi , Lescano Susana Angélica Zevallos , Giuffrida Rogério , Kmetiuk Louise Bach , Biondo Alexander Welker , Santarém Vamilton Alvares 

TITLE=Serosurvey of Toxoplasma gondii and Toxocara spp. co-infection in pregnant women in low-income areas of Brazil

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1340434

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2024.1340434

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=<sec id="sec1"><title>Introduction</title><p>Despite human toxoplasmosis and toxocariasis having been listed among the top six most neglected parasitic zoonoses worldwide, presenting similar associated risk factors and transmission routes, few studies have been conducted in pregnant women and the consequences of concurrent infection remain to be fully established. Accordingly, the present study has serologically assessed the co-infection and associated risk factors for <italic>Toxoplasma gondii</italic> and <italic>Toxocara</italic> spp. in pregnant women, assisted by the public Unified National Health System (SUS) in southeastern Brazil.</p></sec><sec id="sec2"><title>Materials and Methods</title><p>Blood samples were collected and tested for IgG antibodies against <italic>Toxoplasma gondii</italic> by chemiluminescence immunoassay and against <italic>Toxocara</italic> spp. by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). An epidemiological questionnaire was applied to gather socioeconomic information to assess the risk factors associated with seropositivity to toxocariasis/toxoplasmosis by univariate analysis followed by logistic regression.</p></sec><sec id="sec3"><title>Results</title><p>Overall, seropositivity was 69/280 (24.6, 95% CI: 19.96–30.01) for <italic>T. gondii</italic> and 56/280 (20.0, 95% CI: 15.73–25.08) for <italic>Toxocara</italic> spp. Co-infection was observed in 25/280 (8.9, 95% CI: 6.12–12.85) pregnant women, with increased odds (OR: 3.3, CI 95%: 1.77–6.14, <italic>p</italic> = 0.0002). Logistic regression revealed that a higher educational level (high school or college) significantly reduced the likelihood of co-infection seropositivity, owning cats increased the odds of toxocariasis, and older pregnant women presented significantly higher <italic>T. gondii</italic> seropositivity.</p></sec><sec id="sec4"><title>Conclusion</title><p>Co-infection herein highlights the importance of educational programs in the prevention of toxocariasis and toxoplasmosis in pregnant women and other high-risk populations.</p></sec>