Seroprevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Toxoplasma gondii Infections in Pregnant Women and Sheep in Meket District, North East Ethiopia

Toxoplasmosis, caused by Toxoplasma gondii, is one of the most important zoonotic diseases in the world. The study aimed to estimate the seroprevalence and associated risk factors of T. gondii infections among sheep and pregnant women in Meket District, North-East Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2021 to June 2021. A simple random sampling strategy and a systematic random sampling strategy were used to select individual animal owners and pregnant women, respectively. A total of 530 blood samples (322 from sheep's jugular vein and 208 from the cephalic vein of pregnant women) were collected and examined using the latex agglutination test kit (LAT). A univariate and multivariate logistic regression test was applied to show the association between the dependent and independent variables, considering p<0.05 with a 95% confidence interval. The overall seroprevalence of T. gondii among individual sheep, flock levels, and pregnant women was found to be 31.4%, 72.5%, and 32.2%, respectively. Age, sex, water source, and cat ownership and cleaning of cat litter were significantly associated (p<0.05) with T. gondii infection in sheep and pregnant women, respectively. In conclusion, serological findings and the questionnaire survey indicated that T. gondii infection is highly prevalent in sheep and pregnant women in the study area, and hence appropriate control measures, including regular surveillance, health education, good hygiene, and management of cats, should be implemented to mitigate the problem.