Özcan UZUN, Özgür KORU, Engin ARAZ, Cahit BABÜR, Mehmet TANYÜKSEL

Possible role of toxoplasmosis in patients with first-episode schizophrenia

Amaç: Çalışmanın amacı, ilk atak şizofrenili (FES) hastalar ile toksoplazmozun olası ilişkisini saptamak olmuştur. Yöntem ve gereç: Çalışmaya 73 FES’li (yaşları 15-54 yaş: ortalama 23,4) ve 40 sağlıklı (yaşları 20-54 yaş: ortalama 30,3) birey alınmıştır. Çalışma gruplarından FES’li hastaların (% 90,4) ve kontrol grubunu (% 95) çoğunlukla erkekler oluşturmuştur. Toxoplasma gondii’ye spesifik IgG ve IgM antikorları Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) ve total antikorlar Sabin-Feldman dye test (SFDT) ile saptanmıştır. Bulgular: Kontrol grubu ile karşılaştırıldığında, çalışma grubunu oluşturan hasta bireylerin daha fazla toksoplazmoz benzeri semptomlar ve kedi sahibi olmak yönünden istatiksel olarak anlamlı oldukları bulunmuş ve de onların apartman tarzından ziyade toprakla aynı seviyede olan evlerde yaşadıkları saptanmıştır. Çalışma grubu daha fazla pişmemiş ya da çiğ et ile pastörize olmayan keçi sütü ve tavuk yumurtası tüketmekte, daha fazla toprakla temasta bulunmakta ve de şehirden ziyade daha fazla kırsal kesimde yaşamaktaydılar. Serolojik testlere bakıldığında, 73 FES’li hastanın 32’si (% 43,8) ELISA IgG, 25 (% 34,2)’i SFDT ile seropozitif olarak saptanmıştır. Kontrol grubunda, 13’ü (% 32,5) ELISA IgG, 15’i(% 37,5) SFDT ile pozitif bulunmuştur. FES’li hastaların analizinde, pozitif 25 SFDT örneğin 17’si (% 68) ELISA IgG ile de pozitif bulunurken 48 SFDT negatif serumun 15’i (% 31,3) ELISA IgG ile seropozitif bulunmuştur. Kontrol grubunda, pozitif 15 SFDT örneğin 11’i (% 73,3) ELISA IgG ile de pozitif bulunurken 2 negatif serum ELISA IgG ile seropozitif bulunmuştur. Sonuç: Çalışma, toksoplazmozun ilk atak şizofreni ile birliktelik gösterebileceğini ortaya koymaktadır. Şizofreniden yakınan hastalar ile T. gondii enfeksiyonu birlikteliği hakkında daha fazla çalışmalar yapılmasına gereksinim vardır.

İlk atak şizofreni olgularında toksoplazmozun olası rolü

Aim: To determine the possible relationship between toxoplasmosis and patients with first-episode schizophrenia (FES).Materials and methods: Seventy-three subjects with FES (15-54 years old; mean: 23.4 years) and 40 healthy individuals (20-54 years old; mean: 30.3 years) were enrolled in the study. Most of the FES patients (90.4%) and the control individuals (95.0%) were male. Specific IgG and IgM antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii were investigated by enzyme- linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and the total amount of antibodies was investigated with the Sabin-Feldman dye test (SFDT).Results: Compared to the control individuals, study subjects had significantly more toxoplasmosis-like symptoms and more cats in the household; they were less likely to live in apartments and more likely to live in ground-floor houses. They did consume more uncooked meat, unpasteurized goat’s milk, and chicken eggs; had more contact with soil; and were living less often in urban areas and more often in rural areas. Serum samples from 32 (43.8%) and 25 (34.2%) of 73 patients with FES were seropositive for T. gondii when tested by ELISA IgG and SFDT, respectively. Out of 40 serum samples from control subjects, 13 (32.5%) and 15 (37.5%) were found positive for T. gondii by ELISA IgG and SFDT, respectively. In patients with FES, 17 (68%) out of 25 who were SFDT-positive were also positive by ELISA IgG test, while 15 out of 48 (31.3%) SFDT-negative serums were positive by ELISA IgG. In the control group, 11 out of 15 SFDT-positive serum samples (73.3%) were also positive by ELISA IgG test, while 2 out of 25 SFDT-negative serum samples were positive by ELISA IgG.Conclusion: The present study shows that toxoplasmosis might be associated with first-episode schizophrenia. More studies are needed to prove the association between T. gondii infection and patients suffering from schizophrenia.

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