Infection - toxoplasmosis in pregnant women, in children and in adults: symptoms and treatment of toxoplasmosis. The consequences of toxoplasmosis during pregnancy

The article is about the infection of toxoplasmosis, ways of infection with it, the dangers for adults, children and pregnant women, treatment methods and preventive measures.

Toxoplasmosis is not a number of incurable diseases, it is not difficult and quickly treated. But for pregnant women, this parasitic disease is more than dangerous: infection with toxoplasma is fraught with malformations of the fetus or even its death.

Ways of infection with toxoplasmosis

With toxoplasmosis, many organs and systems of human organs are affected:

• brain and nervous system
• lymphatic system
• eyes
• skeletal muscles
• heart
• liver
• spleen

The causative agent of the disease is the simplest organism toxoplasma gondii, related to the SPOROZOA class (Zoroviki), the COCCIDIA detachment (coccidia).

This is how the TOXOPLASMA GONDII parasite looks like.

Toxoplasma gondii is transmitted to a person from pets, mainly from cats. It is in the cat organism that the parasites multiply sexual. Toxoplasma gondii stands out with cats:

• urine
• saliva
• milk

A person is infected through the skin or mucous membranes, the integrity of which is broken.

Toxoplasmosis infection scheme

Ways of infection with toxoplasma can be others:
Infection of a person toxoplasma gondii can also occur due to the use of insufficiently processed thermally meat, offal and eggs

Infection is rare, but it is possible when transfusing blood or organs transplantation

An infected pregnant woman can convey toxoplasma gondii to the fetus

Important: the infection of toxoplasma in the developed countries of Europe and North America is 30-50%, while in the countries of Africa, Central and South America 9 out of 10 people are infected

To insure yourself from toxoplasmosis, it follows:

1. Wash your hands thoroughly after cleaning the cat tray, in no case do not touch your mouth and face
2. Wash your hands thoroughly after contact with the ground, sand
   Make sure that young children do not play in the sandbox with their hands, especially, they do not touch their face and do not pull them into their mouths
3. Observe the rules of heat treatment of meat, offal, eggs
4. If a woman does not have antibodies to toxoplasmosis, she should limit contacts with a cat's tray and animals themselves during pregnancy

A pregnant woman who does not have immunity to toxoplasm should not remove a cat toilet.

Penetrating into the human body, toxoplasma gondii affects first the lymphatic and then the circulatory system. Further, the infection applies to internal organs: brain, retina, liver, spleen and heart.
Parasites are activated only at the moment when the human immune system begins to weaken. Therefore, the disease often occurs for a long time hidden. Being a carrier of toxoplasm, a person may not suspect this.
Toxoplasmosis often takes a chronic form.

Important: from man to man toxoplasma gondii is not transmitted in any other way, except through blood

Toxoplasmosis in adults: symptoms and signs

Toxoplasmosis is distinguished by the nature of the course:

• in acute form
• in subdominal form
• in chronic form

Toxoplasma affects the brain and the central nervous system.

In adults, the disease is predominantly latent - without symptoms, without a significant increase in the titer of antitoxoplasmic antibodies in the blood.

Extremely acute toxoplasmosis in adults on the 14th day from infection can manifest itself with such symptoms:

• general weakness
• quick fatigue
• myalgia
• increasing temperature to subfebrile (up to 38 s)
• increasing the lymph nodes (cervical, inguinal, occipital, supra- and submitted, axillary) without changes in the skin above them

Chronic toxoplasmosis proceeds alternating stages of exacerbation and remission. He is fraught with sick adults:

• decreased memory and attention
• irritability
• neurotic reactions
• vegetovascular dystonia
• menstrual cycle disorders in women
• impotence in men
• adrenal failure
• hepatitis
• other

Important: complications of toxoplasmosis in adults are rare, but dangerous. This is an increase in the liver and spleen (hepatolienic syndrome) skin rashes, pneumonia, uve, myositis, myocarditis and encephalitis, others

Video: toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis in children: symptoms and signs

In children, a parasitic disease in most cases also flows latent. But due to non -formed immunity, acute current with such symptoms is possible:

• subfebrile temperature
• jaundice due to damage to the spleen and liver
• clouding of the lens, strabismus due to eye damage
• rash
• increasing lymph nodes

A child can catch toxoplasmosis from a domestic animal or in a sandbox.

Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women: symptoms and signs. Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women, consequences for a woman

A pregnant woman, like any other adult, may not feel at all the signs of infection toxoplasma gondii, because of the possible two options:

• her immune system to cope with infection
• the disease will occur in her hidden form

In the case of a state of immunodeficiency, the future mother with toxoplasmosis may rise, the lymph nodes will increase, it will feel weakness and general malaise, it will have a rash and other signs of infection.
But for the fruit, infection with toxoplasma through the placenta can turn into sad consequences.

Toxoplasma can penetrate through the placental barrier.

Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women, consequences for the child

Infection toxoplasma gondii shortly before conception and during the period of bearing a child can be very dangerous. Although the infection overcomes the placental barrier not in 100% infected women, the consequences for the baby can be very negative:

1. If an infection with toxoplasma in a woman occurred before conception or in the first month of pregnancy, the infection penetrated the fetal egg, most likely, a miscarriage will occur. The risk of fetal infection is up to 15%
2. Toxoplasmosis in the future mother, who grabbed the infection at 2-5 months of pregnancy, is fraught with the fetus with serious disorders of the nervous system, including anencephalus, microcephaly, hydrocephalus, blindness, heart defects, anomalies in the development of the spinal cord, liver and spleen, and others. The risk of fetal infection is 30-50%
3. In the last three months, a child in the womb with a mother with toxoplasmosis of the mother is infected in 80% of cases. He can be born with heart problems and lungs, disorders of the central nervous system, cooling in weight and growth, weakened immunity, developmental delay, and so on

Important: pregnant women can treat toxoplasma since 16 weeks of pregnancy. But this does not mean that the child will be insured from the consequences of infection. If the disease was detected up to 22 weeks, the woman will be offered to terminate the pregnancy

The longer the pregnancy period, the greater the risk of infection of the fetus toxoplasma.

Prevention of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women

The risk of infection with toxoplasma does not mean that a woman, having learned about her pregnancy, should urgently get rid of the cat. She can take simple measures of a preventive nature:

• do not let the pet out
• feed it with special food or thermally processed meat
• enter the husband or other relatives cleaning the cat tray
• do not kiss a cat

Toxoplasmosis is not a reason to get rid of a pet. The expectant mother should only observe precautions.

Moreover, doctors found out that only a small percentage of pregnant women “enough” toxoplasma gondii from cats. Most cases of infection are due to the use of meat and eggs. Therefore, the future mother:

• should not try raw minced meat during cooking dishes
• should thoroughly wash your hands, board and dishes after working with meat
• should not eat meat dishes in doubtful places
• should fry well, bake, bake meat
• shouldn't eat raw eggs

Diagnosis of toxoplasmosis. Analysis for toxoplasmosis in pregnant women

In its symptoms, toxoplasmosis, including expectant mothers, is similar to many other diseases, for example, mononucleosis, leteriorosis, chlamydia, herpes, and others. For an accurate diagnosis, it is necessary to conduct laboratory studies.

Each pregnant woman takes an analysis for antibodies to toxoplasmosis.

To identify antibodies of the IgM and IgG class, blood is made from vein. Diagnosis is carried out by a serialgic method.

Important: Analysis for toxoplasma is included in the Torch-compartment and is binding for all those who have registered in women's consultation of pregnant women

The analysis allows you to identify the TOXOPLASMA GONDII infection itself or immunity to it, if infection and recovery have ever occurred in the past.

IMPORTANT: Pregnant, analysis of the TORCH complex in which showed the presence of IGG antibodies to toxoplasm may not worry. She has immunity to infection, because the child is safe.

Deciphering tests for toxoplasmosis in pregnant women. The norm of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women

Experts consider the question of the norm of toxoplasmosis in expectant mothers incorrect. On the one hand, it is good when the results do not have neither IGM antibodies nor IGG antibodies, which means that a woman is healthy. But this also means that infection can occur in the remaining period of pregnancy.

On the other hand, IGG antibodies indicate that the woman has already encountered infection, in one form or another was ill with toxoplasmosis, but now her baby is insured.

Antibodies to Toxoplasma Gondii. Decoding.

Treatment of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women, in adults and children

The tactics of treatment of toxoplasmosis are chosen depending on what form the disease proceeds, how expressed its symptoms, how much the patient suffers from them. Sometimes the disease itself and its complications need treatment.
I appoint:

1. Bacteriostatic drug, such as biseptol or rovamycin
2. Drugs to increase immunity such as lycopide, cycloferon
3. Hepatoprotectors and enzymes. (Foglenzim, Wobenzim, Karsil, Essential, Hepaben)
4. Vitamins
5. Symptomatic drugs

Pregnant with toxoplasmosis should not self -medicate.

The patient needs dispensary observation at:

• infectious disease specialist
• neuropathologist
• okulist
• gynecologist

Important: a pregnant woman with toxoplasma in no case should self -medicate! Only a doctor should prescribe drugs

How to treat toxoplasmosis: tips and reviews

Toxoplasmosis is one of many dangers that await future mothers. But he should not become their panic fear! Pregnant women should drive negative thoughts from themselves, enjoy their position, but do not forget to protect themselves and observe security measures.

Interesting video: Toxoplasmosis - School of Dr. Komarovsky