Epidemiology of Ocular Toxoplasmosis in Three Community Surveys in the Central Region of Ghana, West Africa

Epidemiology of Ocular Toxoplasmosis in Three Community Surveys in the Central Region of Ghana, West Africa

Purpose: To conduct the first ever population-based survey on ocular toxoplasmosis in the Central Region of Ghana. Methods: A cross-sectional population-based study was conducted in three randomly selected communities in the Central Region, Ghana. Visual acuity (VA) measurement, dilated fundus exami...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ophthalmic epidemiology Vol. 23; no. 1; pp. 14 - 19
Main Authors: Abu, Emmanuel Kwasi, Boampong, Johnson Nyarko, Amoabeng, Joseph Kwame, Ilechie, Alex A., Kyei, Samuel, Owusu-Ansah, Andrew, Boadi-Kusi, Samuel Bert, Amoani, Benjamin, Ayi, Irene
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: England Informa Healthcare 02-01-2016
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Antibodies, Protozoan - blood
Cape Coast
Child
Cross-Sectional Studies
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
epidemiology
Female
Ghana
Ghana - epidemiology
Health Surveys
Humans
Immunoglobulin G - blood
Immunoglobulin M - blood
Male
Middle Aged
ocular toxoplasmosis
Ophthalmoscopy
Prevalence
retinochoroiditis
Toxoplasma - immunology
Toxoplasma - isolation & purification
Toxoplasmosis, Ocular - diagnosis
Toxoplasmosis, Ocular - epidemiology
Visual Acuity - physiology
Ghana
epidemiology
Ghana
retinochoroiditis
Cape Coast
ocular toxoplasmosis
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Summary:Purpose: To conduct the first ever population-based survey on ocular toxoplasmosis in the Central Region of Ghana. Methods: A cross-sectional population-based study was conducted in three randomly selected communities in the Central Region, Ghana. Visual acuity (VA) measurement, dilated fundus examination by indirect ophthalmoscopy and serology testing were performed on all participants. Ocular toxoplasmosis was diagnosed based on characteristic retinal lesions and supported by positive serologic testing using commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Results: A total of 390 subjects aged 10-100 years (mean age 47 years) were examined; 118 (30.3%) were male and 272 (69.7%) female. Ten subjects (6 females and 4 males) had toxoplasmic ocular lesions (prevalence 2.6%). Of these, two had bilateral lesions and eight had unilateral lesions. Subjects with toxoplasmic ocular lesions were older than those without lesions (p = 0.028). The development of ocular toxoplasmosis was not associated with rural dwelling, sex, keeping cats, or consumption of meat. Conclusion: The prevalence of ocular toxoplasmosis in our Ghanaian study population was lower than findings from Southern Brazil, where there is a similar prevalence of infection in the general population.
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content type line 23
ISSN:0928-6586
1744-5086
DOI:10.3109/09286586.2015.1089579