- TORCH complex
TORCH Complex (aka TORCHES or the TORCH infections) is a medical
acronym for a set of 5congenital infection s (i.e. that are passed from an infected mother to her fetus).Conditions
The infections are:
#
Toxoplasma gondii
# Other infections, namelyHepatitis B ,Syphilis , and Varicella-Zoster Virus
#Rubella
#Cytomegalovirus
#Herpes simplex virus The diseases present similarly, involving the heart, skin, eye, and CNS. They all cause
chorioretinitis ,microcephaly , and focal cerebralcalcification .It is possible for genetic conditions (
Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome ) to present in a similar manner.cite journal |author=Knoblauch H, Tennstedt C, Brueck W, "et al" |title=Two brothers with findings resembling congenital intrauterine infection-like syndrome (pseudo-TORCH syndrome) |journal=Am. J. Med. Genet. A |volume=120A |issue=2 |pages=261–5 |year=2003 |month=July |pmid=12833411 |doi=10.1002/ajmg.a.20138 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.a.20138] cite journal |author=Vivarelli R, Grosso S, Cioni M, "et al" |title=Pseudo-TORCH syndrome or Baraitser-Reardon syndrome: diagnostic criteria |journal=Brain Dev. |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=18–23 |year=2001 |month=March |pmid=11226724 |doi= |url=http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0387760400001881]History
There were originally four conditions,cite journal |author=Kinney JS, Kumar ML |title=Should we expand the TORCH complex? A description of clinical and diagnostic aspects of selected old and new agents |journal=Clin Perinatol |volume=15 |issue=4 |pages=727–44 |year=1988 |month=December |pmid=2850128 |doi= |url=] with the "TO" referring to "Toxoplasma". The four-term form is still used in many modern references.cite journal |author=Abdel-Fattah SA, Bhat A, Illanes S, Bartha JL, Carrington D |title=TORCH test for fetal medicine indications: only CMV is necessary in the United Kingdom |journal=Prenat. Diagn. |volume=25 |issue=11 |pages=1028–31 |year=2005 |month=November |pmid=16231309 |doi=10.1002/pd.1242 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/pd.1242] The capitalization "ToRCH" is sometimes used in these contexts.cite journal |author=Li D, Yang H, Zhang WH, "et al" |title=A simple parallel analytical method of prenatal screening |journal=Gynecol. Obstet. Invest. |volume=62 |issue=4 |pages=220–5 |year=2006 |pmid=16791006 |doi=10.1159/000094092 |url=http://content.karger.com/produktedb/produkte.asp?typ=fulltext&file=GOI2006062004220]
Some uses of the term redefine the "O" as "other", and include other conditions under the "O", such as
syphillis .cite journal |author=França CM, Mugayar LR |title=Intrauterine infections: a literature review |journal=Spec Care Dentist |volume=24 |issue=5 |pages=250–3 |year=2004 |pmid=15552342 |doi= |url=]References
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