BackgroundToxoplasmosis is a zoonosis caused by an obligate intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, which affects warm-blooded animals including humans. Its prevalence rates usually vary in different regions of the planet.MethodsIn this study, an analysis of the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis among Brazilian students was proposed by means of IgG specific antibodies detection. The presence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies by indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) was also evaluated in order to compare it with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and to assess the use of 2,2′-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and o-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride chromogens.ResultsThe IFAT method showed a seroprevalence of 22.3%. These results were similar to those obtained by ELISA (24.1%). The seroprevalence was directly estimated from the IgG avidity, which showed that in a sample of 112 students, three of them had acute infection, an incidence of 1.6% in the studied population.ConclusionIn this study, the use of different chromogenic substrates in immunoenzymatic ELISA assays did not display different sensitivity in the detection of T. gondii-reagent serum. The extrapolation of results to this population must be carefully considered, since the investigation was conducted on a reduced sample. However, it allows us to emphasize the importance of careful and well prepared studies to identify risk factors for toxoplasmosis, to adopt preventive measures and to offer guidance to at-risk populations about the disease.
Objectives: To investigate if the standard fetal hemoglobin concentration curve developed by Nicolaides et al (1988) is suitable for prediction in a sample of Brazilian fetal population. Methods: Cross-sectional observational study that included 161 fetuses assisted at the Hospital of Clinics of Federal University of Minas Gerais (HC-UFMG) from January 2012 to December 2015. Considering ethical concerns about fetal blood sampling, our study was restricted to fetuses that would be submitted to cordocentesis for assistance reasons, wich is the case of prenatal karyotyping at HC-UFMG. Patients with singleton pregnancies between 18 and 36 weeks of gestation whose fetuses presented malformations demanding invasive prenatal genetic study were included. An aliquot of collected blood was reserved for hematological analysis, performed trough automated methodology. Absolute difference and variance between observed and expected hemoglobin based on Nicolaides et al formula were estimated. 48 fetal blood samples were available to final analysis once patients whose baseline condition could cause hematological changes were excluded. Simple linear regression was used to evaluate dispersion and compare haemoglobin levels. Paired t-test was applied to compare means. Pearson's, intraclass correlation and Bland-Altman diagram were obtained to assess measures agreement. Results: Hemoglobin levels were significantly more dispersed than expected by the standard curve, preventing the adjustment of a reliable regression model to estimate hemoglobin from our sample. Mathematic correlation tools showed non-agreement between expected and observed hemoglobin values. Conclusions: The curve proposed by Nicolaides et al does not fit as suitable model for prediction of fetal hemoglobin in the sample studied. Thus, it cannot be considered the best classification and treatment tool for anemic fetuses in our population.
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