[Toxoplasmosis in the Republic of Mali. An epidemiologic approach]

1664- sera from children and adults were collected in rural and urban areas of Mali and were tested in Toxoplasmosis serology. Immunofluorescent antibody tests and direct agglutination test have been used for this purpose. 65 per cent of adults from urban area and 56 to 58 per cent of adults from rural area gave positive results. Before the age sixteen, only 33 to 40 percent of children are positive in urban area while 51 to 53 per cent are so in rural area. The study of hundreds of sera collected from various animals allows to explain the different ages of the serological changes. In rural area children have been infected very early after catching birds, reptiles and above all, rodents and eating them not cooked enough. In urban area the infection occurs all along the life and, particularly, in adults, after consuming grilled meat. The recent description of three cases of congenital toxoplasmosis demonstrates the interest of such an epidemiological study.