title: [Toxoplasmosis and pregnancy. Multicenter study of 16,362 pregnant women in Barcelona].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to know: 1) the prevalence of antibodies against toxoplasma in pregnant women, 2) the incidence of primary infection during pregnancy and 3) the prevalence of congenital toxoplasmosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seroprevalence was prospectively analyzed in 16,362 pregnant women visited in 8 hospitals and 2 day care centers in Barcelona during 1999. Each participant laboratory included their own assays to detect toxoplasma-specific immunoglobulins IgM, IgA, IgG and IgG avidity antibodies. In case of positive specific IgM, a second serum sample was requested, which was processed in parallel with the first one. Three infection stages were defined: acute, possible and past (latent). Congenital infection was determined prenatally by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in amniotic fluid or postnatally by serology in the newborn.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seroprevalence was 28.6%. The incidence of primary infection during pregnancy was 1.02/1,000 susceptible pregnant women. Nine women out of 12 with an acute toxoplasma infection became seroconverted during their pregnancies and five of them had infants with congenital toxoplasmosis (vertical transmission: 41.6%). All four children born alive had no symptoms during their follow-up.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study, the prevalence of toxoplasmosis was low. Acute toxoplasmosis was detected mainly by seroconversion during pregnancy. The frequency of maternal-fetal transmission was near half of cases.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Microbiología, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain. cmunoz@hsp.santpau.es
authors.forename: Carme
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Muñoz Batet
authors.forename: Cèlia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guardià Llobet
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Juncosa Morros
authors.forename: Lluís
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Viñas Domenech
authors.forename: Montserrat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sierra Soler
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sanfeliu Sala
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bosch Mestres
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dopico Ponte
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lite Lite
authors.forename: Lurdes
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Matas Andreu
authors.forename: Concha
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Juste Sánchez
authors.forename: Margarita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barranco Romeu
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D014123:Toxoplasmosis / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014125:Toxoplasmosis, Congenital / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*