Seroprevalence of zoonotic toxocariasis in the United States: 1971-1973.

Demographic characteristics associated with human Toxocara canis infection in children aged one to 11 years were investigated using data from the Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of 1971 to 1973. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with larval stage antigen was used to measure the concentration of antibodies to T. canis in 1,409 available sera. From 4.6 to 7.3% of the children in different geographic regions of the United States have been infected, with serologic prevalence approaching 30% among black children of lower socioeconomic status aged six to 11 years. For both blacks and whites, higher seroprevalence was associated with a rural residence, increased age in children and number of persons in the household, and with decreased income, education, and number of rooms in the house. Multivariate logistic regression models indicated that blacks had higher infection rates than whites, even when socioeconomic factors were controlled. Certain critical variables, however, such as exposure to dogs or reliable pica histories, were not available for analysis.