الفهرس 
Introduction and Aim of the WorkOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
 |  | from | 125 |  |  |
| | | from | 125 | | |
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is an opportunistic parasite and diagnosis of the infection is usually through detection of anti-Toxoplasma-specific IgM and IgG antibodies by serological assays. This study aimed to explore if there is a possible link between Toxoplasma gondii infection and pediatric brain tumours, using an ELISA test to evaluate anti-Toxoplasma IgM and IgG seroprevalence rates. The study was conducted on 156 children aged from 9 months to 14 years, divided into two groups; children with primary brain tumours were assigned as patients group (n= 64), while apparently heathy children were assigned to the control group (n= 92). In our study, the seropositivity rates for anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies in children with primary brain tumour and controls were 62.5% and 38% respectively with a statistically significant difference. from the analyzed results, we found that vomiting and headache were the most common clinical presentations among Toxoplasma seropositive children with primary brain tumours, followed by visual impairment, inability to walk, and drowsiness. Regarding toxoplasmosis related risk factors in the participated children, there was a significant association between anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies and a past-history of surgery. Children with positive-consanguinity had a higher rate of anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibody seropositivity (65%) than those with negative-consanguinity (35%). Additionally, seropositive children with a family history of brain tumours had a 9-fold higher risk than those with seronegative results, indicating that tumours are more common in their families due to genetic factors. In this study, medulloblastoma and pilocytic astrocytoma were the most common brain tumours in seropositive participated children followed by glioblastoma multiforme and fibrillary astrocytoma. In conclusion, our study shades light on a potential correlation between Toxoplasma gondii infection and primary brain tumours in children.