Risk of Mother-To-Child Transmission of Toxoplasma Gondii Infection among Pregnant Women in the Greater Accra Region
| dc.contributor.author | Kwofie, Kofi Dadzie | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2014-03-20T08:32:59Z | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-04-19T21:16:22Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2014-03-20T08:32:59Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-04-19T21:16:22Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2012-06-20 | |
| dc.description | A Thesis submitted to the Department of Clinical Microbiology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy, June-2012 | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | Toxoplasmosis is caused by Toxoplasma gondii which can be acquired orally or congenitally. Congenital infection of infants is known to result in several neurological, brain and ophthalmic disorders later in life. This study therefore sought to determine the risk of mother-to-child transmission of T. gondii among women at delivery in a hospital facility in the Greater Accra region of Ghana. Ninety- three (93) pregnant women aged 18 to 45 years voluntarily participated with their babies. Maternal Blood, Umbilical cord blood and tissue samples were taken at delivery after the expulsion of each placenta. Finger-prick blood was taken from infants of participating mothers two to six weeks post-natal. ELISA was used to detect anti-T. gondii IgG and IgM antibodies in all blood samples while Nested-PCR was used to detect T. gondii DNA extracted from placental tissue. Data collected were analysed using SPSS (Version 16). Overall, 37.6% (35/93) maternal blood were positive for anti-T. gondii IgG with 39.5% (36/91) umbilical cord blood also positive for anti-T. gondii IgG. Fifty-seven percent (23/40) of post-natal infant blood was positive for anti-T. gondii IgG. All of the blood samples were negative for IgM. T. gondii DNA was detected in 39.8% (35/88) of placental tissues. 38.4% (33/86) of matched maternal and foetal samples were positive for anti-T.gondii IgG and/or T. gondii DNA. Toxoplasma gondii DNA detected in placenta may be largely from cysts and is indicative of infection of the mother in the course of gestation. Placental toxoplasmosis exposes the foetus to the risk of infection which implies that almost 40% of the infants were at risk of congenital infection. Further studies needs to be done to determine the rate of mother-to-child transmission of T. gondii in Ghana. | en_US |
| dc.description.sponsorship | KNUST | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://ir.knust.edu.gh/handle/123456789/5835 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.title | Risk of Mother-To-Child Transmission of Toxoplasma Gondii Infection among Pregnant Women in the Greater Accra Region | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |
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