Disminución en la prevalencia de anticuerpos contra Toxoplasma gondii en adultos del valle central de Costa Rica

Abstract

This is a study of the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in a representative sample of individuals from the Central Valley of Costa Rica. Four hundred volunteers aged 20 to 40 years old participated in this survey. The influence of age, gender, socioeconomic condition and urban or rural origin of the subjects on the seroprevalence rate was evaluated. The determination of IgG antibodies for T. gondii was carried out with a qualitative enzyme-linked-immunosorbent-assay (ELISA) trademark Human (Germany). The general prevalence of antibodies in the studied population was 58%, lower than the ones published in previous reports in our country. A significant increase in the seropositivity was found as the age increased (p=0,002). Male individuals and those of rural origin showed a higher seroprevalence than women (61,5% vs 55%; p=0,225) and adults of urban origin (62,7% vs 56,4%; p=0,394) respectively, although these differences were not statistically significant. A higher proportion of positive individuals for T. gondii of low socioeconomic status was found (67,1%) in comparison with those in middle (55,6%; p=0,048) or high status (48,7%; p= 0,014). The present study reveals an important decrease in the seroprevalence for T. gondii in the population of the Central Valley of Costa Rica, therefore, increasing the number of susceptible people to the infection. It is quite important to focus on a better clinical and epidemiological surveillance toward the detection and prevention of the infection in the seronegative pregnant women.