Clinical and imaging characterization of ocular toxoplasmosis in a Central-West Brazilian population

Abstract

Abstract Objective To evaluate and characterize patients with presumed ocular toxoplasmosis using combined clinical and serological approaches in the municipality of Três Lagoas, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Methods This cross-sectional quantitative study included 85 patients with presumed Toxoplasma gondii related retinochoroiditis referred from the public healthcare system. Participants underwent ophthalmologic examination and serological testing for anti- T. gondii IgG and IgM antibodies. Patients were classified into control (G1), active lesion (G2), and cicatricial lesion (G3) groups. Results Overall, 76.5% of patients were positive for anti- T. gondii IgG, while 3.5% were positive for IgM. Most patients with cicatricial lesions (G3) were IgG-positive (31/33). In contrast, IgM positivity was restricted to a small subset of patients (3/13) with active lesions (G2). Ophthalmologic evaluation demonstrated that unilateral disease predominated (78.2%), with lesions mainly located in the posterior pole (52.8%). Morphologically, round-to-ovoid lesions were most frequent (60.0%), followed by amoeboid (16.0%), placoid (8.0%), and wedge-shaped and punctate (4.0% each) patterns. Mean lesion size among evaluable eyes was 16.2 mm 2 . Conclusion The analyses provide data that contribute to the understanding of the clinical characteristics of the disease, ocular behavior, and serological findings. Consequently, preventive measures may be implemented, reducing risk factors and improving patients’ quality of life.