Campylobacter Jejuni in Pregnancy

EDITORIAL COMMENT: We accepted this paper for publication since it reinforces the message carried by the paper by D. J. Farrell and M. T. Harris (Aust NZ J Obstet Gynaecol 1992; 32: 172–174) that Campylobacter species can cause perinatal infection and deaths. Irma Kruszelnicki, the senior microbiologist at the Mercy Hospital for Women, provided the information that at this hospital faecal samples from patients presenting with clinical symptoms of diarrhoea are routinely screened for Campylobacter species using selective media. Specimens which are mucoid, bloody or purulent are examined by direct preparation microscopy since this often gives an indication of the presence of Campylobacter namely seeing numerous leucocytes and characteristically vibrantly‐motile curved organisms. Since 1982 there have been 8 cases of Campylobacter species isolated, 7from faeces (all Campylobacter jejuni) inpatients (4 adults, 3 neonates) with clinical symptoms or signs of enteritis and one positive blood culture (Campylobacter fetus subspecies fetus) from an infant who had clinical features of septicaemia and survived after treatment with gentamicin. Summary: Case notes of pregnancies with proven Campylobacter jejuni infections were collected from 2 Queensland teaching hospitals and reviewed. Of these cases, 2 pregnancies (3 fetuses) resulted in stillbirths, 2 neonates required treatment with antibiotic therapy within 2 days of birth, while the remaining 2 pregnancies were treated at the time of the infection and were not associated with adverse outcome. Maternal Campylobacter infection should be actively sought for in the patient with suspected infectious diarrhoea.