Prevalence of Toxoplasmosis among Pregnant Women in Tobruk City, Libya

Awad A. M. Saad; Abdelsalam F. I. Alawaj; Abdulbasit S. Mukhtar; Elham B. Idreis; Asma M. Mosa; Fatema M. Maemoun; Reem A. Yuonis Yuonis

doi:10.64516/ergtcp34

Authors

Awad A. M. Saad Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medical Technology, Tobruk University, Tobruk, Libya Author
Abdelsalam F. I. Alawaj High Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Ajdabiya, Libya Author
Abdulbasit S. Mukhtar Faculty of Medical Science Technology, Al Zaytona University, Tarhuna, Libya Author
Elham B. Idreis Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medical Technology, Tobruk University, Tobruk, Libya Author
Asma M. Mosa Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medical Technology, Tobruk University, Tobruk, Libya Author
Fatema M. Maemoun Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medical Technology, Tobruk University, Tobruk, Libya Author
Reem A. Yuonis Yuonis Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medical Technology, Tobruk University, Tobruk, Libya Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.64516/ergtcp34

Keywords:

Toxoplasma gondii, Congenital Toxoplasmosis, IgG, IgM, Pregnancy, ELISA

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous apicomplexan parasite that causes toxoplasmosis in humans and animals. It represents one of the most important parasitic infections during pregnancy and can cause severe complications, including fetal death. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of toxoplasmosis among pregnant women in Tobruk City. A total of 295 pregnant women aged from 16 to over 45 years were tested between January 2019 and January 2021. ELISA was used to detect IgG and IgM antibodies against T. gondii in sera. Results showed that 35.9% were seropositive by ELISA. Among them, 5.4% had positive IgM indicating acute infection and risk for congenital toxoplasmosis, while 30.1% had positive IgG. The highest infection rate (50.9%) was among women aged 36–45 years. The findings highlight the importance of health education and serological follow-up during pregnancy to prevent congenital toxoplasmosis.

References

1. Aguirre AA, Longcore T, Barbieri M, Dabritz H, Hil D, et al. The One Health Approach to Toxoplasmosis: Epidemiology, Control, and Prevention Strategies. EcoHealth. 2019;16:378–90.

2. Wilking H, Thamm M, Stark K, Aebischer T, Seeber F. Prevalence, incidence estimations, and risk factors of Toxoplasma gondii infection in Germany: a representative, cross-sectional, serological study. Sci Rep. 2016;6:22551.

3. Patz JA, Graczyk TK, Geller N, Vittor AY. Effects of environmental change on emerging parasitic diseases. Int J Parasitol. 2000;30(12):1395–405.

4. Havelaar AH, Kemmeren JM, Kortbeek LM. Disease burden of congenital toxoplasmosis. Clin Infect Dis. 2007;44(11):1467–74.

5. Torgerson PR, Mastroiacovo P. The global burden of congenital toxoplasmosis: a systematic review. Bull World Health Organ. 2013;91(7):501–8.

6. Muñoz-Zanzi CA, Tamayo R, Balboa J, Hill D. Detection of oocyst-associated toxoplasmosis in swine from southern Chile. Zoonoses Public Health. 2012;59:389–92.

7. Peyron F, McLeod R, Ajzenberg D, Contopoulos-Ioannidis D, et al. Congenital toxoplasmosis in France and the United States: one parasite, two diverging approaches. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2017;11:e0005222.

8. Ortiz S, Martin R, de Juan V. Ocular toxoplasmosis: A case report. Int J Clin Med. 2013;4:1–4.

9. Ngo HM, Zhou Y, Lorenzi H, Wang K, Kim T, et al. Toxoplasma modulates signature pathways of human epilepsy, neurodegeneration, and cancer. Sci Rep. 2017;7:11496.

10. Saadatnia G, Golkar M. A review on human toxoplasmosis. Scand J Infect Dis. 2012;Early Online:1–10.

11. Torrey EF, Bartko JJ, Lun ZR, Yolken RH. Antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in patients with schizophrenia: a meta-analysis. Schizophr Bull. 2007;33:729–36.

12. Leal FE, Cavazzana CL, de Andrade HF Jr, Galisteo A Jr, et al. Toxoplasma gondii pneumonia in immunocompetent subjects: case report and review. Clin Infect Dis. 2007;44(6):e62–6.

13. Pappas G, Roussos N, Falagas ME. Toxoplasmosis snapshots: global status of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence and implications for pregnancy and congenital toxoplasmosis. Int J Parasitol. 2009;39:1385–94.

14. Hill D, Dubey JP. Toxoplasma gondii: transmission, diagnosis and prevention. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2002;8(10):634–40.

15. Rasti S, Behrashi M, Kazemi B, Fatahian A, Mousavi G, Namakchian M. Diagnosis of congenital toxoplasmosis by polymerase chain reaction. Indian J Med Microbiol. 2012;30:251.

16. Su C, Shwab EK, Zhou P. Moving towards an integrated approach to molecular detection and identification of Toxoplasma gondii. Parasitol. 2010;137(1):1–11.

17. Gaetano P, Angelina C, Michele R. Acute pericarditis and myocarditis Toxoplasma gondii in an immune man. J Infect Med. 2010;18(1):48–52.

18. Wallon M, François P. Congenital toxoplasmosis: A plea for a neglected disease. Pathogens. 2018;7(1):E25.

19. Montoya J, Remington J. Toxoplasma gondii. In: Mandell GL, Douglas RG, Bennett JE, Dolin R, editors. Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. 5th ed. Philadelphia: Churchill Livingstone; 2000. p.2858–88.

20. Boshapor SO, Kassem HH. Incidence of Toxoplasma antibodies among women in Benjawad, Libya. Proc 32nd IIER Int Conf, Dubai. 2015.

21. Gamal MAB, Jaroud RB. Seroprevalence study of IgG antibodies to toxoplasma and risk factors among pregnant women in Alkhoms, Libya. Lebda Med J. 2015;1:15–9.

22. Magrhi S, Abudher A, Guma N, Hagrasi H, Mohammed S, et al. Toxoplasmosis and pregnancy outcome. Proc Nat Biotech Conf Albeda. 2003;435–42.

23. El-Zaidi GM. Seroepidemiological study on toxoplasmosis in women in El-Jabal El-Akhdar district. MSc Thesis, Omar Al-Mukhtar Univ; 2007.

24. Sariti SR, Al-Gazal MA, Elsalhi RM. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii among pregnant women in Misurata, Libya. Theor Appl Biosci Symp. 2015;74–8.

25. Gashout A, Lazrag T, Gashut H, Swedan T. Risk of spontaneous abortion with toxoplasma and rubella immunity. Libyan J Infect Dis. 2008;2(1):52–6.

26. Kassem HH, Morsy TA. Anti-Toxoplasma antibodies among pregnant women in Benghazi, Libya. J Egypt Soc Parasitol. 1991;21(1):69–74.

27. Mousa DA, Mohammad MA, Toboli AB. Toxoplasma gondii infection in pregnant women with adverse pregnancy outcome. Med J Islam World Acad Sci. 2011;19(2):95–102.

28. Muhsin SS, Mohsin MA, Nasraalla BA. Seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis among males in Baghdad, Iraq. IOSR-JPBS. 2018;13(2):22–6.

29. Ezatpour B, Mohammad Z, Hessam R, Yadollah P, Mehdi A, et al. Seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in mentally retarded patients in Iranian rehab centres. J Parasit Dis. 2015;39(1):13–17.