Toxoplasmosis Among HIV-Infected Patients in the U.S.: Uncommon but Not Gone

Hospitalizations for toxoplasmosis have declined dramatically among HIV-positive patients; rates are higher among Hispanics than other ethnic groups.

About half the world's population carries the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii with few or no long-term consequences. However, in patients with advanced immunodeficiency, T. gondii tissue cysts can become reactivated and cause severe disease, primarily involving the central nervous system. Early in the HIV epidemic, toxoplasmosis was a very common opportunistic infection (OI) in patients with advanced AIDS, but since the advent of prophylaxis and potent antiretroviral therapy (ART), it has become relatively uncommon in the U.S. CDC investigators recently documented this trend, using national data on toxoplasmosis-related hospitalizations in both HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals.

Among HIV-positive patients, the annual number of toxoplasm…

Reviewing Author

Carlos del Rio, MD

Toxoplasmosis Among HIV-Infected Patients in the U.S.: Uncommon but Not Gone

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Reviewing Author