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Updated: Sep 29, 2026

3-D Imaging and Analysis of Neurons Infected In Vivo with Toxoplasma gondii
Published on: December 9, 2014
Congenital toxoplasmosis: eye manifestations in infants and children
K Vutova1, Z Peicheva, A Popova
1Department of Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, Epidemiology & Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Medicine, PO Box 54, 1431 Sofia, Bulgaria. k_vutova@hotmail.com
Abstract:
The eye manifestations of congenital toxoplasmosis were investigated in 38 infants and children. Diagnosis of the congenital ocular lesions was established clinically, using also X-ray, computed tomography and ultrasonography, and confirmed by two immunodiagnostic techniques. Infants and children were examined when one or more characteristic manifestations of ophthalmic disorders were present. Typical symptoms and signs can present at birth or appear later in life. The multiplicity of clinical manifestations is characteristic of the disease. The most common symptom was chorioretinitis (92%), associated in 71% of the cases with other ocular lesions, and the second most common symptom was microphthalmia and strabismus. The inflammatory process also involved the anterior segment of the eye: iridocyclitis, cataract, glaucoma. Other rare findings were hydrocephalus, calcification in the brain, paresis, epilepsy and diminished visual acuity. The study showed that transplacental transmission of Toxoplasma to the fetus can have severe clinical consequences and terminate in fatal ocular impairment.
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