Evaluation of Anti-Toxoplasma gondii Antibodies in Hemodialysis Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease in Sari, Iran

BACKGROUND: Toxoplasma gondii has worldwide distribution and is one of the most prevalent infectious agents in humans. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in hemodialysis patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the hemodialysis unit of Fatemeh Zahra hospital at the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in Sari, Iran. METHODS: Seventy-three patients with CKD and 145 healthy volunteers were assessed for anti-Toxoplasma gondii (IgG, IgM, and IgA) antibodies using a conventional ELISA technique. RESULTS: The anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibody was detected in 80.8% of the cases in the patient group, while 31.5% of the cases in the CKD patient group and 31.8% in the control group were found to be positive for the anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgA antibody. All the patients in the CKD group were negative for the anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgM antibody, although 2.76% of the healthy volunteers were found to be positive. The present study suggests that there was no significant difference between the hemodialysis patient group and the healthy volunteers. CONCLUSIONS: The epidemiological data collected in this study could serve as a reference for future studies and may be useful in developing preventive and educational strategies, and consequently reducing healthcare expenditure.