1 Rawal Medical Journal An official publication of Pakistan Medical Association Rawalpindi Islamabad branch Established 1975 Volume 37 Number 2 April – June 2012 Original Article Relationship between Toxocara canis infection and schizophrenia Nagwa Mostafa El-Sayed, Khadiga Ahmed Ismail Faculty of Medicine, Research Institute of Ophthalmology, Ain Shams, Egypt ABSTRACT Objective To investigate the seropositivity rate for anti-Toxocara IgG antibodies in patients with schizophrenia and to assess its association with schizophrenia along with some risk factors for toxocariasis, eosinophilia and the presence of other intestinal parasites. Methods Serological examination of 90 schizophrenic patients and 45 healthy controls was carried out by using commercial Toxocara canis IgG ELISA kit for the detection of anti-Toxocara antibodies. Also, eosinophils in peripheral blood and the presence of other intestinal parasites were investigated. Results Seropositivity for T. canis was detected in 21 (23.3%) out of 90 schizophrenic patients and in one subject (2.2%) of 45 healthy controls (p<0.01). When seropositive and seronegative schizophrenic patients were compared with respect to sex, residence, owning dogs /cats,