Serological Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in Faculty of Medicine of Bursa Uludag University During 2016-2018

ABSTRACT

Objective: This study aimed to retrospectively investigate Toxoplasma gondii IgG and IgM distribution and IgG avidity in serum samples with suspected toxoplasmosis in the medical microbiology serology laboratory of Faculty of Medicine Hospital at Bursa Uludag University over a 24-month period (January 2016 to December 2018). Methods: An enzyme-linked fluorescent assay using the VIDAS automated analyzer (BioMérieux, France) was used to determine T. gondii IgM antibodies, T. gondii IgG antibodies, and T. gondii IgG avidity. Results: The T. gondii IgM antibody positivity was found to be 1.7% (101/6104), whereas the T. gondii IgG antibody positivity was 37.9% (1.149/3024). The seropositivity of T. gondii IgG was 31.5% in women belonging to the childbearing age group. In this group, T. gondii IgG high and low avidity rates were 70.1% (134/191) and 15.2% (29/191), respectively. Conclusion: Screening and diagnosis of toxoplasma serology in women of childbearing age is important. The results of this study may be useful for designing optimal control and preventive measures against T. gondii infection.