[Genital bacterial carriage during the last trimester of pregnancy and early-onset neonatal sepsis].
Bacterial infections remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality in newborn infants.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the bacterial ecology and pathological status of the genital organs during the last trimester of pregnancy and the germs of the following early-onset neonatal sepsis, in order to evaluate the risk of materno-foetal infections and to find out a drug prophylaxis.


METHODS
Vaginal and endocervical samples, usually taken during the first trimester of pregnancy were delayed and taken during the last trimester of pregnancy. A macroscopic examination described the aspect of the vagina, the cervix uteri, leukorrhea and of possible inflammatory lesions or ulcerations. A microscopic examination searched for parasites, epithelial cells, clue cells and leukocytes. The appropriate bacteriological cultures were performed after reading the Gram stain and scoring the vaginal flora. The clinical and cytobacteriological aspects were used to identify the bacterial ecology and the pathological genital states. An exploration was carried out in every newborn suspected of infection.


RESULTS
Genital samples were collected from 306 pregnant women. Among them, 118 were at 29-32 weeks of gestation, 104 at 33-36, and 84 at 37-40. The most frequent germs were C. albicans (33,5%), Enterbacteriaceae (20.3%) including E. coli (10.9%), S. aureus (15.4%), Gardnerella (13.6%), and Trichomonas (10.6%), in monomicrobian (79.2%) and polymicrobian carriage (20.8%). Lower genital tract pathological states such as vaginitis (29.4%), bacterial vaginosis (21.5%) or endocervicitis (10.4%), asymptomatic bacterial carriage (23.5%) and normal genital flora (15%) were identified. These pregnancies led to 334 live births with 27 cases of early-onset neonatal sepsis to which endocervicitis (25%) and vaginosis (19,7%) were most often linked.


CONCLUSIONS
Genital samples at the last trimester of pregnancy could evaluate the risk of maternofoetal infections and allow to adapt a drug prophylaxis of Enterobacteriaceae, the most frequent germ of neonatal infections, as it has been done for Streptococcus agalactiae. But larger studies are required to evaluate the risk of maternofoetal infections and to state the drug prophylaxis.
Balaka
B
B
Service de pédiatrie, centre hospitalier universitaire de Lomé, Togo.
Agbèrè
A
A
Dagnra
A
A
Baeta
S
S
Kessie
K
K
Assimadi
K
K
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002353:Carrier State; D005260:Female; D005836:Genitalia, Female / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011247:Pregnancy; D011263:Pregnancy Trimester, Third; D018805:Sepsis / Q000382:microbiology*