Question

You and a friend, who is three months pregnant, stop at a hamburger stand for lunch. Based on your knowledge of toxoplasmosis, what helpful advice can you give your friend? On returning home, you notice that she has two cats. What additional information might you be inclined to share with her?

Answer 1

Toxoplasmosis is an an infection caused by a coccidian parasite called Toxoplasma gondii.In humans toxoplasmosis can be defined as a zoonotic disease which is transmitted from animals to humans via contact. It is a unicellula protozoan parasite which occurs mainly in 3 forms.

*Trophozoite

*Tissue cyst

*Oocyst

Trophozoite and tissue represent the asexual forms of the parasite while oocyst represent the sexual form. So the parasite completes its life cycle mainly in two hosts, the definitive host is cat and other felines innehich both the sexual and asexual stage can occur while intermidiate host can be man and other mammals where the asexual cycle takes place.

Cats mainly acquire the infection by ingestion of meat containing the tissue cyst which are the resting gorms of the parasite which will undergo excystation in the intestine of the cat and release bradyzoites in the small intestine.Bradyzoites are the multiplying parasites within the cyst. These bradyzoites undergo asexual cyvlevsnd form merozoites and some will get transformed into male and female gametes which will then form oocyst which will get released to the environment through faeces. These will then enter humans or other intermediate host and cause infection. In healthy individuals the cyst is harmless while in immunocompromised persons thus may get activated to form infection.

Maintaining contact with cats during pregnancy can cause toxoplasmosis sometimes congenital toxoplasmosis. Eating of improperly cooked infected meat or uncooked meat of pork can result in infection. Another source of infection can be ingestion of food or water contaminated with mature oocyst or fingers that have been contaminated with cat faeces.

So it is very necessary to maintain a distance with cats. Mother infected with Toxoplasmosis which is in primary stage may transmit it to foetus and can cause severe damage to foetus. The infected newborns may be asymptomatic during beginning but some will develop infection. In weeks, months or years after birth.

Clinical manifestations in newborn session include fever, jaundice, petechial rashes, myocarditis, cerebral cslcigications, glaucoma etc.. other manifestations include mental retardation, deafness, blindness, convulsions, microcephaly.