Types of toxoplasmosis and how to protect yourself

Toxoplasmosis is a disease caused by contamination with the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. About 90% of infected people do not have any symptoms, but this contamination is particularly serious in women during pregnancy because it can put the baby's life at risk.

Women who have been contaminated before becoming pregnant can develop chronic toxoplasmosis and need not worry, but all those who have never had contact with the microorganism must be careful throughout pregnancy with everything they eat to avoid being contaminated at this stage thus protecting the baby.

How infection with Toxoplasma gondii occurs

The types of toxoplasmosis vary according to the way the disease presents itself, and can be:

1. Acute febrile toxoplasmosis

In acute febrile toxoplasmosis, which is the most common form of the disease, the infected person usually has no symptoms and therefore does not need treatment. When symptoms are present these may be red patches on the skin, fever and there may be symptoms such as diffuse pneumonia, dry cough, myocarditis and muscle pain while there is fever, abdominal pain and mild hepatitis.

2. Lymphatic toxoplasmosis

In mild lymphatic toxoplasmosis, the disease manifests symptoms that include an enlarged lymph node size in the neck and armpit, malaise, muscle pain and low, fluctuating fever that can last for weeks or months. Mild anemia, low blood pressure, low WBC count and slightly abnormal liver function tests are common.

3. Disseminated toxoplasmosis

It can produce rash, high fever, chills and extreme fatigue. It occurs mainly in individuals with compromised immune system as in those with AIDS, being common to cause encephalitis, hepatitis, pneumonitis, myocarditis, meningoencephalitis, and as a consequence of the inflammations it can cause seizures, tremors, headache, mental confusion or coma. Acute disseminated toxoplasmosis is the most common opportunistic infection in people with the HIV virus due to a reactivation of the cysts, mainly in the brain causing encephalitis.

4. Neonatal toxoplasmosis

Neonatal toxoplasmosis is when the baby is infected during pregnancy bringing serious complications such as premature birth, low birth weight, problems with the liver, eyes, lungs and heart.

5. Ocular toxoplasmosis

Ocular toxoplasmosis occurs in case of contamination of the baby during pregnancy and can manifest itself at birth or years later causing serious damage to the eyes, especially when the optic nerve and macula are affected. Its treatment can be done with pyrimethamine, sulfadiazine, folinic acid, in addition to corticosteroids prescribed by the doctor and aims to stop vision loss.

6. Generalized toxoplasmosis

It is a very serious form of the disease that leads to death even when it affects healthy people, but it is rare.

How to protect yourself from toxoplasmosis

The only way to protect yourself is to cook food very well because there is no vaccine for human use against infection by T. gondii , the only vaccine in existence is for sheep.

Regarding contamination caused by cat feces, this usually does not happen with domestic cats that do not hunt, nor do they eat raw meat. The fresh feces of the cat, although they may contain oocysts, are not yet sporulated and therefore do not transmit toxoplasmosis. The greatest risk is in contact with the land where the cat buried its feces, where the oocytes had time to be sporulated by the environment, being able to contaminate the soil, the water of this soil and also the food produced in it. These can remain on land for up to 1 year.

So, to protect yourself from toxoplasmosis you need to:

• Always garden with gloves; Change the sand daily where the cat's feces are and wash the container with hot water or chlorine every day; Wash fruits and vegetables that are eaten raw; If you have cats at home, do not allow them to eat raw meat.

To find out if the person has already been infected with T. gondii , a blood test should be performed, which finds antibodies against the protozoan.