Toxoplasmosis in humans and animals in Brazil: high prevalence, high burden of disease, and epidemiology

Parasitology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 139 (11) ◽  
pp. 1375-1424 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. DUBEY ◽  
E. G. LAGO ◽  
S. M. GENNARI ◽  
C. SU ◽  
J. L. JONES
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Congenital Toxoplasmosis ◽  
Protozoan Parasite ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Genetic Characteristics ◽  
Brazilian Government ◽  
Child Bearing ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
And Control ◽  
Very High

SUMMARYInfections by the protozoan parasiteToxoplasma gondiiare widely prevalent in humans and animals in Brazil. The burden of clinical toxoplasmosis in humans is considered to be very high. The high prevalence and encouragement of the Brazilian Government provides a unique opportunity for international groups to study the epidemiology and control of toxoplasmosis in Brazil. Many early papers on toxoplasmosis in Brazil were published in Portuguese and often not available to scientists in English-speaking countries. In the present paper we review prevalence, clinical spectrum, molecular epidemiology, and control ofT. gondiiin humans and animals in Brazil. This knowledge should be useful to biologists, public health workers, veterinarians, and physicians. Brazil has a very high rate ofT. gondiiinfection in humans. Up to 50% of elementary school children and 50–80% of women of child-bearing age have antibodies toT. gondii. The risks for uninfected women to acquire toxoplasmosis during pregnancy and fetal transmission are high because the environment is highly contaminated with oocysts. The burden of toxoplasmosis in congenitally infected children is also very high. From limited data on screening of infants forT. gondiiIgM at birth, 5–23 children are born infected per 10 000 live births in Brazil. Based on an estimate of 1 infected child per 1000 births, 2649 children with congenital toxoplasmosis are likely to be born annually in Brazil. Most of these infected children are likely to develop symptoms or signs of clinical toxoplasmosis. Among the congenitally infected children whose clinical data are described in this review, several died soon after birth, 35% had neurological disease including hydrocephalus, microcephaly and mental retardation, 80% had ocular lesions, and in one report 40% of children had hearing loss. The severity of clinical toxoplasmosis in Brazilian children may be associated with the genetic characteristics ofT. gondiiisolates prevailing in animals and humans in Brazil.

scholarly journals Systematic review of hypertension prevalence and awareness in Sub-Saharan Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eléazar Ndabarora ◽  
Clemence Nishimwe ◽  
Dariya Mukamusoni
Keyword(s):  
Preventive Measures ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
High Rate ◽  
African Countries ◽  
High Increase ◽  
Hypertensive Patients ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
And Control ◽  
Very High

Several studies have reported high prevalence of hypertension in Africa, but little is known on awareness and determinants of preventive measures uptake. The purpose of the review was to identify and review the studies which reported at the same time on the prevalence of hypertension and awareness among the participants in sub-Saharan Africa, and to recommend needed research studies and interventions to prevent and control hypertension increase. High prevalence of hypertension was found across sub-Saharan African countries. The increasing hypertension rate moved from 19.7% in 1990 to 30.8% in 2010, with very high increase in some sub-regions up to 77%. A low awareness was found, less than 50% and in some place less than 10%. Also a high rate of hypertensive patients who were not on treatment was found. There is a very increasing prevalence of hypertension and unawareness in sub-Saharan Africa. There is also a high rate of hypertensive patients who are not on treatment.  Studies and interventions aiming at understanding determinants of hypertension screening and treatment uptake are much recommended.

scholarly journals No evidence for airborne transmission of Toxoplasma gondii in a very high prevalence area in Lancaster County

Pteridines ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 172-178
Author(s):  
Abhishek Wadhawan ◽  
Dolores E. Hill ◽  
Aline Dagdag ◽  
Hira Mohyuddin ◽  
Patrick Donnelly ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Toxoplasma Gondii ◽  
Congenital Toxoplasmosis ◽  
Pcr Amplification ◽  
Heart Tissue ◽  
Low Grade ◽  
Airborne Transmission ◽  
Air Filters ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Food Borne Illness ◽  
Very High

AbstractBackground: Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) has been associated with acute food-borne illness, chronic low-grade inflammation, neuropsychiatric conditions and reactivation of chronic latent infection in immunocompetent hosts. Primary infection with T. gondii in pregnant women can lead to congenital toxoplasmosis. In addition to well-known oral tissue-cyst or oocyst ingestion, we hypothesized that the very high prevalence of T. gondii in certain populations exposed to agricultural dust could be, in part, a consequence of airborne infection with oocysts. Methods: We collected environmental dust samples from an area with a reportedly high T. gondii seroprevalence in the Old Order Amish population, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Samples included: a) air filters from air-conditioning units; b) swabs of settled dust; and c) vacuum filters containing airborne field dust. Pools of the swabs and shredded sub-samples of the air filters were fed to pigs, with inoculation into mice of heart tissue from seroconverted pigs. We also investigated the presence of T. gondii DNA using PCR amplification. Results: Only one pig seroconverted. However, bioassay of pig heart tissue further inoculated into mice showed no evidence of T. gondii infection. Consistently, no evidence of T. gondii DNA was revealed in any sample. Conclusions: No evidence of airborne transmission was found in the environmental samples that were examined.

scholarly journals Hypoarousal non-stationary ADHD biomarker based on echo-state networks

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Ibanez-Soria ◽  
A. Soria-Frisch ◽  
J. Garcia-Ojalvo ◽  
Jacobo Picardo ◽  
Gloria García-Banda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neurodevelopmental Disorder ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Theta Band ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Eyes Closed ◽  
Echo State Networks ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Eyes Open ◽  
Very High ◽  
Better Than

ABSTRACTAttention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. It is one of the most commonly diagnosed neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders of childhood and therefore presents a very high prevalence rate. However the high rate of ADHD misdiagnosis makes the discovery of neurophysiological ADHD biomarkers an important clinical challenge. This study proposes a novel non-stationary ADHD biomarker based on Echo State Networks to quantify EEG dynamical changes between low attention/arousal states (resting with eyes closed, or EC) and normal attention/arousal states (resting with eyes open, or EO). Traditionally, EEG biomarkers have revealed an increase in stationary power in the theta band along with a decrease in beta, with these frequencies largely accepted to be altered in the ADHD population. We successfully verify the hypothesis that measured differences between these two conditions are altered in the ADHD population. Statistically significant differences between a group of ADHD subjects and an aged-matched control population were obtained in theta and beta rhythms. Our network discriminates between EO/EC EEG regimes in the ADHDs better than in controls, suggesting that differences in EEG patterns between low and normal arousal/attention states are larger in the ADHD population.

scholarly journals Electronic Ventilator for COVID-19 Patient treatment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Meraj ◽  
Atif Iqbal ◽  
Nasser MA Emadi ◽  
Prathap Reddy Bhimireddy ◽  
Chowdhary Muhammad Enamul Hoque
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Control Process ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Patient Treatment ◽  
Hospital Nurses ◽  
Semiconductor Switches ◽  
Digitally Controlled ◽  
And Control ◽  
University Laboratory ◽  
Very High

In response to expected shortages of ventilators caused by COVID-19 pandemic, globally many organizations and institutes have developed low cost and high rate production ventilators. Many of these ventilators are mechanical type and pneumatic type which are easy to produce but do not have all the necessary control parameters and their options as per the patient requirements. Furthermore, their failure rate is very high and computer interfacing and control is difficult. To address all the drawbacks of the available ventilator, power electronic motor drive based digitally controlled ventilator is designed, developed and tested in the Qatar University Laboratory. It consists of semiconductor switches based inverter driven by the microcontroller to run the BLDC (brushless direct current) motor. All the parameters such as pressure, rate of flow and volume required is successfully tuned and trained to the microcontroller. As per the patient requirement, it can deliver the required amount of the oxygen into the patient’s body and similarly removes the exhaling air from inside. As all the control process is happening by the microcontroller, all the safety, sound and valves can be easily integrated to reduce the risk for the patient. Minimal number of access control buttons are provided to use the developed ventilator so that it can be easily used by all kinds of hospital nurses.

scholarly journals Prevalence of dementia in Colombian populations

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 323-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Efraín Amaya Vargas ◽  
Ángela Magnolia Ríos Gallardo ◽  
Guillermo González Manrrique ◽  
Lina M. Murcia-Paredes ◽  
María Consuelo Angarita Riaño ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gradual Increase ◽  
Scientific Progress ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
High Rate ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The City ◽  
Very High ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Prevalence Of Dementia

With the gradual increase in the life expectancy of the population due to scientific progress and public health at the service of society, the prevalence of dementia has been increasing at different rates worldwide. Currently, the prevalence rates range between 5% and 7% (6.4% in the U.S. and up to 8.5 % in Latin America) in subjects older than 60 years. The lowest prevalence rate (2.1%) has been reported from sub-Saharan Africa, probably due to selective mortality under 60 years of age. By contrast, a very high prevalence of dementia (23.6% dementia in individuals ≥60 years) was observed in the city of Neiva, Southern Colombia. We believe that this high rate could be explained by the presence of several risk factors such as very low schooling, low socio-economic strata, chronic diseases, the inclusion of geriatric homes among others, and additional unknown factors.

scholarly journals Epidemiological review ofToxoplasma gondiiinfection in humans and animals in Portugal

Parasitology ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 141 (13) ◽  
pp. 1699-1708 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. P. LOPES ◽  
J. P. DUBEY ◽  
M.-L. DARDÉ ◽  
L. CARDOSO
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
General Population ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Congenital Toxoplasmosis ◽  
Congenital Infection ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Serological Survey ◽  
Considerable Part ◽  
Genetic Characteristics ◽  
Public Health Workers

SUMMARYToxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonosis. However, data from Portugal are limited and a considerable part of the literature is in Portuguese. Currently, the rate of congenital infection in Portugal is unknown, and almost nothing is known of sequelae of congenital toxoplasmosis. There is no recent general population-based serological survey ofToxoplasma gondiiin humans in Portugal. In addition, there is little information on genetic characteristics ofT. gondiiin animals and humans. In the present paper, we review prevalence, clinical spectrum and epidemiology ofT. gondiiin humans and animals in Portugal. This knowledge should be useful to biologists, public health workers, physicians and veterinarians.

scholarly journals A comparative study on the effects of various factors to the revalence of pelvic inflammatory disease in North central Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-117
Author(s):  
U M Oyedum ◽  
F A Kuta ◽  
A A Saidu ◽  
H Babayi
Keyword(s):  
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease ◽  
Inflammatory Disease ◽  
Reproductive Age ◽  
High Rate ◽  
North Central ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Tubal Blockage ◽  
Rural Dwellers ◽  
And Control ◽  
Gynaecological Disease

Pelvic inflammatory disease is a gynaecological disease that affects the upper genital organs of reproductive age females. It is a disease associated with clinical sequalae such as tubal blockage, oophoritis and cervicitis which are said to result to high rate of disease (such as female infertility) and deaths among the females. This study therefore attempts to evaluate the association of various factors to high prevalence of pelvic inflammatory disease among women residing in developing countries such as Nigeria. Questionnaires were administered to all women enrolled for this study too obtain their data. Seven hundred and twenty (720) patients out of 1170 patients enrolled for this study were recorded to be pelvic inflammatory disease patients, of which 380(85%) were rural dwellers; 452(87.6%) were ignorant of pelvic inflammatory disease and were thus easily prone to the disease; 285(86.4%) were within the reproductive ages of 25-29 years; 350(85.2%) previously had urinary tract infection a year ago; 496(85.8%) and 343(83.5%) were both married and uneducated females. The high prevalence of pelvic inflammatory disease recorded in this study is due to certain predisposing factors practiced among females in their reproductive ages, hence it is necessary for government to enforce certain measures such as establishment of free education, continuous awareness of pelvic inflammatory disease and establishment of free medical check up to help prevent and control the spread of pelvic inflammatory disease.

scholarly journals PP044 Adherence To Enzyme Replacement Therapy In Gaucher Disease

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. 91-92
Author(s):  
Amanda Quevedo ◽  
Alicia Dornelles ◽  
Livia Paskulin ◽  
Taciane Alegra ◽  
Barbara Krug ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Replacement Therapy ◽  
Replacement Therapy ◽  
Gaucher Disease ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Reference Center ◽  
Enzyme Replacement ◽  
Brazilian Government ◽  
Type 3 ◽  
Very High

INTRODUCTION:Gaucher disease (GD) is a genetic autosomic disorder for which treatment has been funded by the Brazilian government since the 1990s. In our state most patients are treated with enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) and followed by our Reference Center under the recommendation of the Ministry of Health Brazilian guidelines. There is a lack in the literature about adherence of patients to treatment. The objective was to describe adherence to the treatment in a cohort of all GD patients in the southern state of Brazil.METHODS:This was a cohort study of all GD patients treated with velaglucerase α, taliglucerase α and imiglucerase from January 2010 to January 2015. Adherence was measured as recommended by the Brazilian guidelines as to perform more than 50 percent of the anticipated infusions per year.RESULTS:Our study included thirty-seven patients of both genders. Doses of ERT varied from 15 to 45IU/kg for type 1 patients and from 30 to 60 IU/kg for type 3 patients. A mean of 83 percent of anticipated infusions were performed and from all patients only one did not adhere to the treatment during the 5 years of our study. The majority of the patients performed at least 50 percent of all anticipated infusions.CONCLUSIONS:We noted a very high rate of adherence to treatment with a very few adverse effects. Our data might be showing that the very high rate of adherence in these chronic disease patients may be attributed to the value of treatment by patients and their family, and also due to the existence of a multidisciplinary team at the reference center. These data might be useful for public health policy making in other countries.

scholarly journals The life-cycle of Toxoplasma gondii reviewed using animations

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Márcia Attias ◽  
Dirceu E. Teixeira ◽  
Marlene Benchimol ◽  
Rossiane C. Vommaro ◽  
Paulo Henrique Crepaldi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Toxoplasma Gondii ◽  
Cell Model ◽  
Protozoan Parasite ◽  
Lytic Cycle ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Unique Cell ◽  
Transmission Pathways ◽  
And Control ◽  
Important Parasite

AbstractToxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite that is the causative agent of toxoplasmosis, an infection with high prevalence worldwide. Most of the infected individuals are either asymptomatic or have mild symptoms, but T. gondii can cause severe neurologic damage and even death of the fetus when acquired during pregnancy. It is also a serious condition in immunodeficient patients. The life-cycle of T. gondii is complex, with more than one infective form and several transmission pathways. In two animated videos, we describe the main aspects of this cycle, raising questions about poorly or unknown issues of T. gondii biology. Original plates, based on electron microscope observations, are also available for teachers, students and researchers. The main goal of this review is to provide a source of learning on the fundamental aspects of T. gondii biology to students and teachers contributing for better knowledge and control on this important parasite, and unique cell model. In addition, drawings and videos point to still unclear aspects of T. gondii lytic cycle that may stimulate further studies.

scholarly journals High Rate of Resistance to Quinupristin-Dalfopristin in Enterococcus faecium Clinical Isolates from Korea

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (12) ◽  
pp. 5176-5178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Won Sup Oh ◽  
Kwan Soo Ko ◽  
Jae-Hoon Song ◽  
Mi Young Lee ◽  
Sulhee Park ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enterococcus Faecium ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Resistance Rate ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
High Rate ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Clonal Spread ◽  
Tertiary Care Hospitals ◽  
Very High

ABSTRACT We tested the in vitro susceptibilities of 603 enterococcal isolates from eight tertiary-care hospitals in Korea. The quinupristin-dalfopristin resistance rate in Enterococcus faecium was very high (25 isolates, 10.0%). It was suggested that both clonal spread and the sporadic emergence of quinupristin-dalfopristin-resistant isolates may explain the high prevalence of quinupristin-dalfopristin resistance in Korea.

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