Profile of pregnant women and children treated at a reference center for congenital toxoplasmosis in the northern state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

introduction: to describe the clinical and epidemiological profile of pregnant women and children treated at a reference outpatient clinic for congenital toxoplasmosis. methods: pregnant women potentially exposed to toxoplasma gondii were observed. diagnoses were made using serologic tests compatible with acute toxoplasmosis. children presenting with: toxoplasma-specific antibodies (igm or iga or ascending igg titers higher than maternal titers in the first 3 months of life) coupled with toxoplasmosis symptoms; intracranial calcifications (by transfontanelar ultrasound or cephalic segment tomography); or retinochoroiditis (by fundoscopy examination) in the first 8 months of life were also included in the study. results: fifty-eight mother-child pairs were observed (mean age of the mothers was 22.1 years). most patients lived in urban areas (86.2%) and had attended less than 8 years of school (51.7%). diagnosis was made after birth in 19 (32.8%) children. thirty-four (58.6%) women received some type of treatment during pregnancy. most (72.4%) of the children did not present with clinical alterations at birth. the main findings were ophthalmological: 20 (34.5%) children with retinochoroiditis, 17 (29.3%) with strabismus, and 7 (12.1%) with nystagmus. of the children with retinochoroiditis, 9 presented with subnormal vision. ten (32.3%) out of 31 children presented with intracranial calcifications by cephalic segment congenital toxoplasmosis, and 9 (42.9%) children presented with delayed psychomotor development. conclusions: our results highlight a critical situation. protocols for follow-up of pregnant women and their children must be created to improve medical care and minimize sequelae.