Serological Prevalence of Toxoplasmosis in Pregnant Women in Brazilian Federal District and its Possible Association with Sanitation Conditions

Author(s): Fernando Saab, Carlos Tomaz, Renato Álvaro Genaro, Jéssica Mendes de Souza, Pedro Barata

Introduction: Toxoplasma infects up to a third of the world's population and the infection can be dangerous to the fetus during pregnancy. In the congenital form, the sequelae in the fetus can be severe and irreversible. Some babies infected with the parasite can be born without complications but present neurological changes during the first year of life, in childhood or even in adulthood. On the other hand, basic sanitation has been considered an important environmental determinant of health. Some studies observed that aspects associated with urban cleaning services and personal hygiene are important factors in the dissemination of toxoplasmosis.

Objective: This study aims to analyze the prevalence of seropositivity for toxoplasmosis in pregnant women screened by the Pregnant Women Protection Program (PWPP) in the Federal District of Brazil between years 2017 to 2020 and its possible association with data related to the infrastructure available for basic sanitation services that households and the urban population of the Federal District have.

Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective study that included a historical series of 127,866 pregnant women screened by the PWPP during prenatal care in the Federal District of Brazil between years 2017 to 2020. The Sanitation Ranking prepared by the Institute Trata Brazil was used, considering the data from the SNIS (National Sanitation Information System - Ministry of Regional Development, Brazil). Sanitation data of Brasília, Federal District, was provided by CODEPLAN (Federal District Planning Company) and “Companhia de Saneamento Ambiental do Distrito Federal - CAESB”.

Results: Of the 127,866 patients examined, 48,534 were positive, resulting in an overall prevalence of 38,06% in pregnant