Seroprevalence of Toxoplasmosis Among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Care in Asmara, Eritrea: Preliminary Report

Abstract

Introduction: The majority of human infections with Toxoplasma gondii produce no symptoms, but in congenitally infected children can cause devastating effects including blindness, brain damage, or miscarriage. Transmission to the fetus occurs predominantly in women who acquire their primary infection during gestation. The study aimed to assess the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis among pregnant women attending antenatal care (ANC) in different areas of Asmara, Eritrea, and to identify possible risk factors associated with toxoplasmosis among pregnant women attending the ANC centers. Methods: In this cross-sectional laboratory-based study, the data were collected from 210 pregnant women in four health facilities. Voluntary sampling technique and a structured questionnaire were used to collect the associated data and socio-demographic information. Cobas e411 Analyzer was used to test the blood serum for immunoglobulin G (IgG) and Immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies. Epi-Info version 7.0 was used for data entry and SPSS version 20.0 was used for data analysis. Results: Of the 210 samples, 112 (53.6%) samples were seropositive and 97 (46.4%) samples were seronegative for T. gondii specific IgG antibody. Furthermore, 2.9% (6) of the samples were seropositive and 97.1% (203) of the samples were seronegative for T. gondii-specific IgM antibodies. Conclusion: The seroprevalence was considerably high, 53.6% for IgG antibody and 2.9% for IgM antibody, which require attention in order to implement preventive control measures, screening tests, and health education.