title: Toxoplasmosis prevention and testing in pregnancy, survey of obstetrician-gynaecologists.
abstract: Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women can lead to congenital disease with severe neurological and ocular complications in the foetus. In 2006, we surveyed US obstetrician-gynaecologists to determine their knowledge and practices about toxoplasmosis prevention and testing. Questionnaires were mailed (four mailings) to a random sample of 1200 of the 33,354 members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Of the 1200 surveyed, 502 (42%) responded. The respondents were similar to all ACOG members by gender, region of the country and practice type (P > 0.5), and age (respondents were slightly younger, mean 46 years versus 47 years). To prevent toxoplasmosis, most respondents indicated that they counsel pregnant women about cat litter (99.6%), but fewer counselled about eating undercooked meat (77.6%), handling raw meat (67.4%), gardening (65.4%) or washing fruits and vegetables (34.2%). Many (73.2%) respondents were not aware that some Toxoplasma IgM tests have had a high false positive rate, and most (91.2%) had not heard of the avidity test, which can help determine the timing of Toxoplasma gondii infection in relation to pregnancy. There is a need for more education about T. gondii serological testing, particularly the Toxoplasma avidity test. US obstetrician-gynaecologists are providing beneficial counselling to their patients, but could provide more information about undercooked meat and soil risks.
authors.affiliation: Division of Parasitic Diseases, National Center for Zoonotic, Vectorborne, and Enteric Diseases, Coordinating Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341-3724, USA. jlj1@cdc.gov
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Krueger
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schulkin
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Schantz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006176:Gynecology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009774:Obstetrics; D010820:Physicians; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011247:Pregnancy; D015597:Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology; D014123:Toxoplasmosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D014481:United States