Maternal Serologic Screening to Prevent Congenital Toxoplasmosis: A Decision-Analytic Economic Model

Maternal Serologic Screening to Prevent Congenital Toxoplasmosis: A Decision-Analytic Economic Model

OBJECTIVE To determine a cost-minimizing option for congenital toxoplasmosis in the United States. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A decision-analytic and cost-minimization model was constructed to compare monthly maternal serological screening, prenatal treatment, and post-natal follow-up and treatment according to the current French (Paris) protocol, versus no systematic screening or perinat...

Why prevent, diagnose and treat congenital toxoplasmosis?

Evidence that prevention, diagnosis and treatment of toxoplasmosis is beneficial developed as follows: anti-parasitic agents abrogate Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoite growth, preventing destruction of infected, cultured, mammalian cells and cure active infections in experimental animals, including primates. They treat active infections in persons who are immune-compromised, limit destruction of ret...

Congenital toxoplasmosis: prevention, screening and treatment.

Congenital toxoplasmosis is an established cause of abortion, neonatal disease and ocular defects presenting in later life. Preventative options include health education, immunization and screening of pregnant women and infants with appropriate management of cases found to be at risk. Screening requires a knowledge of the disease, the test, the treatment and the administration of the proposed p...

Details of Economic Analysis Structure of Decision Analytic Model

Prioritizing Congenital Syphilis Control in South China: A Decision Analytic Model to Inform Policy Implementation

BACKGROUND Syphilis is a major public health problem in many regions of China, with increases in congenital syphilis (CS) cases causing concern. The Chinese Ministry of Health recently announced a comprehensive 10-y national syphilis control plan focusing on averting CS. The decision analytic model presented here quantifies the impact of the planned strategies to determine whether they are like...