ABSTRACT
Toxoplasma gondii is a coccidian parasite with an unusually wide range of intermediate hosts. Felids serve as denitive hosts and produce the environmentally resistant oocyst stage. Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common parasitic infections of man, though its prevalence varies widely from place to place. It continues to be a signicant public health problem in the United States, where 8%–22% of people are infected; a similar prevalence is seen in the United Kingdom.1-5 In Central America, South America, and continental Europe, estimates of infection range from 30% to 90%.2,6,7 Most infections in humans are asymptomatic, but at times, the parasite can produce devastating disease. Infection may be congenitally or postnatally acquired. In the United States, nationwide serological surveys demonstrated that seroprevalence in people remained stable at 23% from 1990 until 1998,3 while recent surveys have demonstrated a signicant decrease in seroprevalence to 10.8% over the last decade.5 Similar decreases in seroprevalence have been observed in many European countries.6
