Overview of Congenital Toxoplasmosis in Pregnant Women; Mode of Infection, Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii, the agent of toxoplasmosis in all warm-blooded animals, undergoes sexual reproduction in cats and asexual reproduction in all other families. Through fecal excretion of oocysts, definitive host (cats) are responsible for the contamination of the environment, whereas intermediate hosts (livestock animals) upon infection, develop T. gondii in their muscle tissues depending on susceptibility, and become reservoirs for the disease. Humans can also get infected by Toxoplasma gondii, either by consuming oocyst from the environment or tissue cysts. Seronegative pregnant women infected with toxoplasmosis will in turn infect their infants through placental transmission, causing congenital toxoplasmosis, a serious disease leading to several neurological and ocular disorders and even death.