health of the newborn

Neonatal Listeriosis

During pregnancy, the transmission of listeriosis from mother to child can occur by transplacental or at birth, during passage through the vaginal canal. Transplacental infection generally leads to abortion, fetal death, preterm labor or neonatal sepsis.

If the pregnancy comes to an end, neonatal listeriosis can occur after a few hours or days after birth : the newborn appears underweight and over-excitable. Often, signs of septicemia, meningitis and circulatory and / or respiratory failure are present. The disseminated infection causes the formation of granulomas on the skin and at the level of the internal organs (liver, adrenal glands, lymphatic tissue, lungs and brain). Early onset listeriosis is associated with very high mortality (up to 50%). The aspiration of amniotic fluid or vaginal secretions can induce a perinatal infection at the level of the lungs, which manifests itself in the first days of life with respiratory distress, shock and fulminant course.

In cases of late-onset listeriosis, on the other hand, the newborn is apparently healthy at birth, but after a few weeks it shows purulent meningitis or, more rarely, septicemia. The mortality rate can reach 10-20%. Children who survive present hydrocephalus, mental retardation or other disorders affecting the central nervous system.