INSERM UMR1094, Tropical Neuroepidemiology, Limoges, France.
Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital of Limoges, Institute of Neuroepidemiology and Tropical Neurology, CNRS FR 3503 GEIST, Limoges, France.
Trop Med Int Health. 2018 Dec;23(12):1304-1313. doi: 10.1111/tmi.13151. Epub 2018 Oct 28.
We aimed at estimating the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection in older adults living in Central Africa and investigating its association with dementia using data from the Epidemiology of Dementia in Central Africa (EPIDEMCA) programme.
A cross-sectional multicentre population-based study was carried out among participants aged 73 (±7) years on average, living in rural and urban areas of the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo between November 2011 and December 2012. Blood samples were collected from each consenting participant. The detection of anti-T. gondii immunoglobulin G antibodies was performed in 2014 in France using a commercially available ELISA kit. Participants were interviewed using a standardised questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics. DSM-IV criteria were required for a diagnosis of dementia. Multivariate binary logistic regression models were used to assess the association between toxoplasmosis infection and dementia.
Among 1662 participants, the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis was 63.0% (95% confidence interval (CI): 60.7-65.3) overall, 66.6% (95%CI: 63.4-69.8) in Central African Republic and 59.4% (95%CI: 56.1-62.7) in the Republic of Congo. In multivariate analyses, toxoplasmosis status was significantly associated with increasing age (P = 0.006), Republic of Congo (P = 0.002), urban area (P = 0.001) and previous occupation (P = 0.002). No associations between dementia and toxoplasmosis status or anti-T. gondii IgG titres were found.
Toxoplasma gondii infection was not associated with dementia among older adults in Central Africa. Our findings are consistent with previous studies and add to the knowledge on the relationship between T. gondii infection and neurological disorders.
我们旨在评估居住在中非的老年人中弓形虫（Toxoplasma gondii，T. gondii）感染的血清流行率，并利用来自中非地区痴呆症流行病学（Epidemiology of Dementia in Central Africa，EPIDEMCA）项目的数据，研究其与痴呆症的关联。
这是一项在 2011 年 11 月至 2012 年 12 月期间，在中非共和国和刚果共和国的农村和城市地区，平均年龄为 73（±7）岁的参与者中进行的横断面多中心人群为基础的研究。从每位同意的参与者中采集血样。2014 年在法国使用市售 ELISA 试剂盒检测抗 T. gondii 免疫球蛋白 G 抗体。使用包括社会人口统计学特征在内的标准化问卷对参与者进行访谈。DSM-IV 标准用于痴呆症的诊断。采用多变量二项逻辑回归模型评估弓形虫感染与痴呆症之间的关联。
在 1662 名参与者中，弓形虫感染的血清流行率总体为 63.0%（95%置信区间：60.7-65.3），在中非共和国为 66.6%（95%置信区间：63.4-69.8），在刚果共和国为 59.4%（95%置信区间：56.1-62.7）。在多变量分析中，弓形虫感染状况与年龄增长（P=0.006）、刚果共和国（P=0.002）、城市地区（P=0.001）和以前的职业（P=0.002）显著相关。未发现痴呆症与弓形虫感染状况或抗 T. gondii IgG 滴度之间存在关联。
在中非的老年人中，弓形虫感染与痴呆症无关。我们的发现与之前的研究一致，并为弓形虫感染与神经障碍之间的关系提供了更多的知识。
