§ Miss Emma NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health when he proposes to set up a national screening service for pregnant women for congenital toxoplasmosis.
§ Mr. MellorAs with other maternal infections the question of toxoplasmosis in pregnancy, including the possibility of screening, is kept under regular review. We are currently seeking the views of experts in this field in order to consider what action may be necessary.
§ Miss Emma NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give national figures by district health authority area of cases of congenital toxoplasmosis; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. FreemanCongenital toxoplasmosis is not a legally notifiable condition; data on incidence are not therefore available. However, data on deaths occurring where congenital toxoplasmosis' has been assigned as the underlying cause of death2 are available. During the years 1983–87 there were six such deaths registered in England and Wales.
1 International Classification of Diseases, (ninth revision) 271.2 (part).
2 Ages 28 days and over from 1986 onwards.
§ Miss Emma NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give figures, by district health authority area, of recorded screenings for congenital toxoplasmosis; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorWe do not collect this information centrally. A recent survey of toxoplasmosis in pregnancy in west Glamorgan found an overall incidence of maternal infection with toxoplasma of two in 1,000.
§ Miss Emma NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement concerning his Department's policy on health education in the prevention of toxoplasmosis with special regard to prevention of the infection of pregnant women.
§ Mr. MellorHygiene measures can help to prevent infection with toxoplasmosis and are especially important for pregnant women. They include washing hands after working with raw meat and handling cat litter, and cooking all meat thoroughly. Pregnant women should also avoid contact with young kittens. The health education authority's leaflet "You and Your Pet" contains advice on toxoplasmosis and on general hygiene in relation to pets.
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§ Miss Emma NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his Department's research into a vaccine for toxoplasmosis.
§ Mr. MellorThe Department does not itself conduct research into vaccines or other medicines, but is always prepared to consider well-founded proposals. Research in the United States of America into a possible vaccine against toxoplasmosis indicates that its development is a long way off.