Toxoplasma Infection in Schizophrenia Patients: A Comparative Study with Control Group

Schizophrenia is a serious, chronic, and often debilitating neuropsychiatric disor­der. Its causes are still poorly understood. Besides genetic and non-genetic (environmental) fac­tors are thought to be important as the cause of the structural and functional deficits that character­ize schizophrenia. This study aimed to compare Toxoplasma gondii infection between schizo­phrenia patients and non-schizophrenia individuals as control group. A case-control study was designed in Tehran, Iran during 2009-2010. Sixty-two pa­tients with schizophrenia and 62 non-schizophrenia volunteers were selected. To ascertain a possible relationship between T. gondii infection and schizophrenia, anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies were detected by indirect-ELISA. Data were statistically analyzed by chi- square at a confidence level of 99%. The sero-positivity rate among patients with schizophrenia (67.7%) was significantly higher than control group (37.1) (P <0. 01). A significant correlation between Toxoplasma infection and schizophrenia might be ex­pected.