antenatal screening programme

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Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis is an infection which is caused by the parasite toxoplasma gondii. It can be caught by eating food contaminated with the parasite. This can include uncooked meat or unpasteurised milk. Infection during pregnancy may harm the unborn baby.

Read more about toxoplasmosis on the NHS website.

UK NSC screening recommendation Based on the last UK NSC review of this condition that occurred in August 2016.

Screening is not currently recommended for this condition.

Screening for toxoplasmosis in pregnant women is not recommended. This is because:

  • the screening test would incorrectly show that toxoplasmosis is present in many women
  • it is not known if the current treatment (antibiotics) would stop the infection being passed to the baby or reduce the severity of the infection
  • there is not enough information about how many people might get the infection in the UK

Supporting documents from the 2016 review

Evidence summary Toxoplasmosis (2015)
This document provides the evidence on which the current UK NSC recommendation is based.

UK NSC coversheet & consultation responses toxoplasmosis (2016)
This document summarises the review process including the public consultation comments.

Review cycle

Date previous review completed: 2016

Next review estimated to be completed: 2021 to 2022.

To see previous evidence reviews, visit the UK NSC archive.

Organisations interested in Toxoplasmosis

These organisations have expressed interest in this recommendation and may submit responses to evidence reviews.

List of organisations

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