scholarly journals Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in Cats from Cyprus

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 882
Author(s):  
Charalampos Attipa ◽  
Christos Yiapanis ◽  
Séverine Tasker ◽  
Anastasia Diakou

Toxoplasma gondii is a cosmopolitan protozoon parasite, and the causative agent of toxoplasmosis, one of the most prevalent zoonotic parasitic diseases. Cats, as definitive hosts, spread the parasite via their faeces, but this occurs only for a very short period in their life. Seropositivity in cats, although not associated with current shedding of the parasite, is indicative of the infection in a cat population and can be used to assess the infection risk for definitive and intermediate hosts in that area. In order to assess the prevalence of infection in cats living in Cyprus, 155 cats, originating from all districts of the country, were examined for the presence of T. gondii antibodies. Additionally, parameters such as age, sex, health status, lifestyle and concomitant infections were statistically assessed as potential risk factors for T. gondii seropositivity. Specific anti-T. gondii antibodies were detected in 50 (32.3%) cats, while the presence of feline immunodeficiency virus antibodies and a history of never having been vaccinated were statistically associated with T. gondii seropositivity on multivariate logistic regression analysis. This is the first report of T. gondii seroprevalence in cats in Cyprus and indicates that raised public awareness should be considered to prevent infection of animals and humans.

Author(s):  
Charalampos Attipa ◽  
Christos Yiapanis ◽  
Séverine Tasker ◽  
Anastasia Diakou

Toxoplasma gondii is a cosmopolitan protozoon parasite, and the causative agent of toxoplasmosis, one of the most prevalent zoonotic parasitic diseases. Cats, as definitive hosts, are spreaders of the parasite via their faeces, but this occurs only for a very short period in their life. Seropositivity in cats, although not associated with current shedding of the parasite, is indicative of the infection in a cat population and can be used to assess the infection risk for definitive and intermediate hosts in that area. In order to assess the prevalence of infection in cats living in Cyprus, 155 cats, originating from all districts of the country, were examined for the presence of T. gondii antibodies. Additionally, parameters such as age, sex, health status, lifestyle and concomitant infections were statistically assessed as potential risk factors for T. gondii seropositivity. Specific anti-T. gondii antibodies were detected in 50 (32.3%) cats, while the presence of feline immunodeficiency virus antibodies and a history of never having been vaccinated were statistically associated with T. gondii seropositivity on multivariate logistic regression model. This is the first report of T. gondii seroprevalence in cats in Cyprus and indicates that raised public awareness should be considered to prevent infection of animals and humans.


2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (12) ◽  
pp. 1531-1536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernanda V.A. da Costa ◽  
Stella de F. Valle ◽  
Gustavo Machado ◽  
Luís G. Corbellini ◽  
Elisa M. Coelho ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT: Using a retrospective study, 493 cats tested for FeLV and FIV were selected for analysis of the association between hematologic findings and positivity at immunoassay test. Individual and hematologic variables were assessed considering the influence of results using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis. Out 153 of the 493 cats were positive for FeLV (31%), 50 were positive for FIV (10.1%) and 22 were positive for both FIV and FeLV (4.4%). Multivariate analysis detected significant associations between FeLV infection and age below 1 year (p=0.01), age from 1 to 10 years (p=0.03), and crossbreed (p=0.04). Male cats were more likely to be FIV-positive (p=0.002). Regarding hematological changes, FeLV-positive cats have higher odds to anemia, leukopenia and lymphopenia than FeLV-negative cats. FIV-positive cats are more likely to have anemia than negative. Identification of associated factors related to animal status and correlation of hematological disorders with infection by retroviruses in cats could be useful for detecting these retroviral diseases in cats.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 250-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiann-Der Lee ◽  
Ya-Han Hu ◽  
Meng Lee ◽  
Yen-Chu Huang ◽  
Ya-Wen Kuo ◽  
...  

Background and Purpose: Recurrent ischemic strokes increase the risk of disability and mortality. The role of conventional risk factors in recurrent strokes may change due to increased awareness of prevention strategies. The aim of this study was to explore the potential risk factors besides conventional ones which may help to affect the advances in future preventive concepts associated with one-year stroke recurrence (OSR). Methods: We analyzed 6,632 adult patients with ischemic stroke. Differences in clinical characteristics between patients with and without OSR were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression and classification and regression tree (CART) analyses. Results: Among the study population, 525 patients (7.9%) had OSR. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that male sex (OR 1.243, 95% CI 1.025 – 1.506), age (OR 1.015, 95% CI 1.007 - 1.023), and a prior history of ischemic stroke (OR 1.331, 95% CI 1.096 – 1.615) were major factors associated with OSR. CART analysis further identified age and a prior history of ischemic stroke were important factors for OSR when classified the patients into three subgroups (with risks of OSR of 8.8%, 3.8%, and 12.5% for patients aged > 57.5 years, ≤ 57.5 years/with no prior history of ischemic stroke, and ≤ 57.5 years/with a prior history of ischemic stroke, respectively). Conclusions: Male sex, age, and a prior history of ischemic stroke could increase the risk of OSR by multivariate logistic regression analysis, and CART analysis further demonstrated that patients with a younger age (≤ 57.5 years) and a prior history of ischemic stroke had the highest risk of OSR.


1994 ◽  
Vol 68 (7) ◽  
pp. 4572-4579 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Baldinotti ◽  
D Matteucci ◽  
P Mazzetti ◽  
C Giannelli ◽  
P Bandecchi ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
Xinyu Chi ◽  
Kexin Fang ◽  
Liza Koster ◽  
Jevan Christie ◽  
Chaoqun Yao

Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is a cosmopolitan protozoan parasite that infects all warm-blooded species including humans. The definitive hosts of T. gondii are felid vertebrates including the domestic cat. Domestic cats shed oocysts for approximately two weeks in their feces after the primary infection. It has been shown that feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) positive cats have a higher prevalence of and a higher titer of antibodies to T. gondii than those of FIV-negative cats. The main purposes of this study were to determine FIV prevalence and to investigate the oocysts shedding in FIV-positive and FIV-negative feral cats on St. Kitts. Fecal samples were collected from feral cats while their FIV statues were determined using a commercial SNAP kit. Total fecal DNA of each cat was tested for the presence of T. gondii DNA using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) consistently detecting one genome equivalent. A FIV-positive status was detected in 18 of 105 (17.1%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 9.9%−24.3%) feral cats sampled. Furthermore, males were three times more likely to be FIV positive than females (p = 0.017) with an odds ratio of 3.93 (95% CI: 1.20–12.89). Adults were found to have at least twice the prevalence of FIV compared to cats younger than one year of age (p = 0.056) with an odds ratio of 3.07 (95% CI: 0.94–10.00). Toxoplasma gondii DNA was not detected in the feces of any of the 18 FIV-positive (95% CI: 0%−0.18%) and 87 FIV-negative cats (95% CI: 0%−0.04%). A follow-up study with a much bigger sample size is needed to prove or disprove the hypothesis that FIV-positive cats have a higher prevalence of shedding T. gondii oocysts than FIV-negative cats.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed Hamad Aldebasi ◽  
Nasser Abdalazez Alsobaie ◽  
Abdulrahman Yousef Aldayel ◽  
Khalid Mousa Alwusaidi ◽  
Tariq Alasbali

Awareness of the patients to the differences between ophthalmologists and optometrists has been recognized as an important factor influencing patient utilization of available eye care services. This study aimed at assessing the public’s knowledge of the differences between ophthalmologists and optometrists among the residents of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. An online questionnaire was administered to adults in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from January to February in 2018. The number of the respondents was 1579. Results show that 50% (n=789) of the participants had fair knowledge of the differences between ophthalmologists and optometrists, while 32% (n=505) had poor knowledge. After multivariate logistic regression analysis, there was a significant association between satisfactory knowledge and visiting an optometrist (odds ratio (OR): 0.75, 95% CI: 0.57–0.98), age older than 26 (OR: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.17–1.19), higher level of education (OR: 1.92, 95% CI: 1.54–2.4), and wearing spectacles (OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.45–0.73). Given the low level of public knowledge regarding the differences in the duties between ophthalmologist and optometrists among a Saudi population, there is great potential for general population education through awareness campaign and social media regarding eye care provider’s duties and practices.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S504-S505
Author(s):  
Amyeo A Jereen ◽  
Celia Kucera ◽  
Saniya Pervin ◽  
Muralidhar Varma ◽  
Radhakrishnan Rajesh ◽  
...  

Abstract Background HIV-associated non-AIDS (HANA) conditions are becoming common as People Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (PLWHIV) age. However, data estimating the prevalence of HANA conditions and associated risk factors is lacking in developing countries. This study evaluates reasons for hospitalizations among PLWHIV in Udupi, India in the antiretroviral era, and describes associated risk factors. Methods Demographic and clinical data were extracted from medical charts of 1280 HIV-infected patients 18 years and older who were admitted to Kasturba Hospital, Manipal, India between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2017, for a total of 2157 hospitalizations. Primary reasons for hospitalization were categorized into AIDS-defining vs Non-AIDS-defining and HANA vs Non-HANA conditions (Fig 1). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to estimate demographic and clinical factors associated with hospitalizations due to AIDS-defining illness and HANA conditions. Categorization of Reasons for Hospitalization Results Patients’ median age was 45 (18-80) years; 70% male. Median age of patients with AIDS-defining illness (45% of hospitalizations) was lower at 44 (18-75) years compared with HANA (15% of hospitalizations) at 48 (21-80) years. Age (OR, 95% CI) (0.985, 0.974-0.995), admission CD4 (0.998, 0.997 - 0.998), history of hypertension (HTN) (0.59, 0.42-0.82), stroke (0.49, 0.24 - 0.93), diabetes (1.56, 1.10 - 2.19), and AIDS-defining cancers (1.74, 1.05 - 2.89) were associated with AIDS-defining hospitalizations (Fig 2). Additionally, age (1.016, 1.001 - 1.031), history of HTN (1.70, 1.16 - 2.46), coronary artery disease (CAD) (4.02, 1.87- 9.02), chronic kidney disease (CKD) (2.30, 1.15 - 4.61), stroke (2.93, 1.46 - 5.96), Hepatitis B (3.32, 1.66- 6.72), Hepatitis C (16.1, 2.84 - 314), sexually transmitted disease (STD) (3.76, 1.38- 10.8), and HANA-associated cancer (2.44, 1.28- 6.42) were associated with HANA hospitalizations (Fig 3). Patient Risk Factors for AIDS-related Hospitalization Patient Risk Factors for HANA-related Hospitalization Conclusion Prevalence of HANA conditions was lower than AIDS-defining illnesses possibly because of a younger population. Patients with AIDS-defining illnesses were also likely to have HANA conditions. Early detection and effective treatment of both HIV and HANA conditions is essential to decrease hospitalizations in low-resource settings. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (4Supl1) ◽  
pp. 2845
Author(s):  
Renata Bezerra Marujo ◽  
Helio Langoni ◽  
Leila Sabrina Ullmann ◽  
Maysa Pellizzaro ◽  
Ramiro Das Neves Dias Neto ◽  
...  

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic zoonosis with worldwide distribution and different wild species either are involved in maintenance of the pathogen in the environment as definitive or intermediate hosts serving as font of feeding or prey to definitive hosts. The present study aimed to investigate Toxoplasma gondii antibodies and the risk factors relating to infection in mammals at Sorocaba Zoo, state of São Paulo, Brazil. Serum samples collected from 153 animals were analyzed using the modified agglutination test (MAT; cutoff ? 25). Seropositivity was found in 62 animals (40.5%; 95% CI: 33.1-48.5%), with different titers. Significant differences were observed in relation to the ages of the animals, origin, presence of free-ranging animals in the enclosure and feeding habits, through univariate analysis (p ? 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that only age (p = 0.03) had significance for the study. Adult animals were 3.5 more likely to become infected than were young ones. In relation to feeding habits, herbivores (80%) and carnivores (46.5%) were the animals most affected. These results highlight the presence of T. gondii in animals at Brazilian zoos, and suggest that continuous transmission is occurring at zoos.


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