Prevalence of antibody to Trypanosoma cruzi in pregnant Hispanic women in Houston

We assessed the seroprevalence of antibodies to Trypanosoma cruzi among pre gnant Hispanic women in Houston. Sera from 2,107 Hispanic and 1,658 non-His panic subjects were tested by ELISA for the presence of antibodies to T. cr uzi. Twenty-two (0.6%) of 3,765 subjects had sera that were reactive. Seror eactivity was confirmed by hemagglutination assay. Eleven subjects had reac tive sera, giving a confirmed seroprevalence of 0.3% (95% CI, 0-1%). Nine s era from Hispanic and two from non-Hispanic women were positive by hemagglu tination assay, for a prevalence of 0.4% and 0.1%, respectively, during pre gnancy. On the basis of these seroreactivity data, transplacental transmiss ion of T. cruzi could occur in the continental United States. Screening for antibodies to T. cruzi during pregnancy would provide the potential for ea rly intervention in congenital Chagas' disease.