Association of Toxoplasma gondii infection with schizophrenia and its relationship with suicide attempts in these patients. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Association of Toxoplasma gondii infection with schizophrenia and its relationship with suicide attempts in these patients.
Trop Med Int Health. 2017 Jul 22. Epub 2017 Jul 22. PMID: 28734096
Maryam Ansari-Lari
OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association of schizophrenia and T. gondii, and to assess the association of infection with suicide attempts and age of onset of schizophrenia in these patients.
METHODS: Case-control study Fars Province, southern Iran. Cases were individuals with psychiatric diagnosis of schizophrenia as per Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) criteria. Controls were healthy blood donors, frequency matched with patients according to age and sex. For detection of IgG antibodies, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used. Data about demographic information in all subjects and duration of illness and history of suicide attempts in schizophrenia patients were collected using a brief questionnaire and hospital records. Chi-square test and multivariable logistic regression were used for statistical analyses.
RESULTS: Among 99 cases, 42 individuals (42%) were positive for T. gondii antibody, versus 41 (27%) among 152 controls (OR=2, 95%CI: 1.2-3.4, P=0.012). We compared the suicide attempts in schizophrenia patients based on their T. gondii serologic status. There was lower rate of suicide attempts in seropositive male patients than seronegative ones (OR=0.3, 95%CI: 0.1-0.97, P=0.04). Age of onset of schizophrenia did not differ between T. gondii infected and non-infected patients.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings may have implications for schizophrenia and suicide prevention programs. However, clearly further studies are required to confirm them. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.