title: Seroepidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii Infection among healthy blood donors in Taiwan.
abstract: Toxoplasma gondii is an opportunistic, zoonotic pathogen with a worldwide distribution. There are large variations in the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection in different regions of the world. Although toxoplasmosis became a notifiable communicable disease in Taiwan in 2007, little is known about its epidemiology among the general population. This cross-sectional study aimed to survey the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection and its risk factors among healthy blood donors in Taiwan. Through collaborating with the Taiwan Blood Services Foundation, a total of 1,783 healthy blood donors from all six-branch blood service centers participated in this study. The blood samples were tested for the presence of T. gondii antibodies and DNA using enzyme immunoassays and real-time PCR, respectively. Structured questionnaires were used to gather information on risk factors for T. gondii infection. Of the 1,783 participants, 166 (9.3%) tested positive for anti-Toxoplasma IgG, while 5 (0.28%) tested positive for anti-Toxoplasma IgM. The five IgM positive donors had high avidity antibodies suggestive of past infection. No active parasitemia was detected by real-time PCR assays. Multivariate logistic regression showed that undercooked pork meat consumption (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 2.9; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.3-6.5), raw mussels consumption (adjusted OR = 5.3; 95% CI: 1.5-19.1), having a cat in the household (adjusted OR = 2.0; 95% CI: 1.2-3.2), a lower education level (adjusted OR = 1.6; 95% CI: 1.1-2.3), and donation place in eastern Taiwan (adjusted OR = 2.5; 95% CI: 1.6-3.9) were independent risk factors for Toxoplasma seropositivity. These findings provide information on the seroprevalence and epidemiology of T. gondii infection among healthy blood donors in Taiwan.
authors.affiliation: Research and Diagnostic Center, Centers for Disease Control, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ting-Yi
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Hwei-Ho
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.forename: Ming-Chu
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Kai-Tse
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: Wei-Chen
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Chia-Kwung
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Chi-Tai
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Dar-Der
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Ji
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001782:Blood Donors; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005517:Foodborne Diseases; D005843:Geography; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques / Q000379:methods; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000737:chemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016017:Odds Ratio; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013624:Taiwan; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000378:metabolism*; D014123:Toxoplasmosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*
chemical_list: D007074:Immunoglobulin G