CURRENT APPROACHES TO PREVENT AND DIAGNOSE CONGENITAL TOXOPLASMOSIS: THE ITALIAN EXPERIENCE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46793/PP180307009SKeywords:
Toxoplasmosis, diagnosis, IGRA test, newborns, pregnancyAbstract
Congenital toxoplasmosis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in congenitally infected newborns: even if the classic triad of hydrocephalus, intracranial calcifications and chorioretinitis is almost a remnant from the past, the infection can still cause retinal disease during childhood or adolescence. Preventive strategies and a correct diagnosis in pregnant women and in newborns are very important. The infection usually runs asymptomatic and the diagnosis relies primarily on serological tests. In pregnant women the differential diagnosis between early seroconversion and false positive IgM is always puzzling. The diagnosis of congenital toxoplasmosis at birth is usually a complicated task; the decision to treat with potentially harmful compounds relies exclusively on laboratory findings (either the detection of anti-Toxoplasma IgM and IgA, or the detection of persistent production of specific IgG during the first year of life) and their interpretation can be challenging when they give heterogeneous results. Researchers are trying to develop new tests that exploit the cellular immunity involved during the course of the infection like an interferon-gamma release assay similar to the Quantiferon for Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
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