Congenital toxoplasmosis

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide parasitic disease, the congenital infection being the most severe manifestation and occurs in the offspring of woman who acquire Toxoplasma gondii infection for the first time during pregnancy.The incidence and severity of congenital infection depend on when in pregnancy the mother acquires the infection. The risk of vertical transmission of the parasite rises steeply with gestational age (GA) at maternal infection.Although about 85% of infected infants are completely asymptomatic at birth, congenital toxoplasmosis may manifest at birth or in the first months of life, with extreme heterogeneity in disease severity and organ involvement. Ophthalmologic manifestations represent the main sequelae of congenital toxoplasmosis, with retinochoroiditis being the most common expression The combination of pyrimethamine with sulfadiazine currently represents the gold standard therapeutic. Associated eye pathologies may occur later in life, An adequate follow-up programme of patients with congenital toxoplasmosis should include ophthalmologic, neurological, audiometric and serologic evaluations.