TOXOPLASMOSIS IN THE HUMAN ADULT

Abstract

HUMAN toxoplasmosis has been recognized with increasing frequency since the first description of the disease by Jankû¹ in 1923 and the demonstration by Wolf, Cowen, and Paige² of Toxoplasma as a cause of congenital encephalomyelitis with hydrocephalus, intracerebral calcifications, microcephaly, chorioretinitis, and microphthalmos. Most of the cases in the literature have been of infants,³ and there is an impressive body of evidence that the infection is acquired in utero from mothers who present no signs of infection.⁴ A few cases of toxoplasmosis occurring in adults have been described. These have differed from the infantile form in that a maculopapular rash and evidence of pneumonitis, acute encephalitis, and myocarditis were prominent in the clinical picture, whereas cerebral calcifications or chorioretinitis have been absent.⁵ The first case considered to be toxoplasmosis in an adult was reported in 1940 by Pinkerton and Weinman.⁶ The patient was a 22-year-old Peruvian who died after a