Lancefield group B β-hemolytic streptococci were first recorded as a cause of human infection in 1938, when Fry described three patients with fatal puerperal sepsis. Sporadic cases were reported until the 1970s, when a dramatic increase in the incidence of…
Diarrheal disease continues to be a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in children worldwide in the 21st century. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates about 2 billion cases and 1.9 million deaths yearly by acute diarrhea in children younger…
Infections of the Liver Bacterial infection of the hepatic parenchyma frequently is recognized as multiple, small inflammatory foci (hepatic microabscesses) observed as an incidental finding in infants dying with sepsis. Diffuse hepatocellular damage, often in conjunction with infection of several…
In 1918, Helmholz recognized the cryptogenic nature and underdiagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI) in the newborn. His observations still hold true today. There are no specific signs of UTI in a newborn; the clinical presentation can vary, ranging from…
Osteomyelitis Osteomyelitis occurring in the first 2 months of life is uncommon. During the worldwide pandemic of staphylococcal disease from the early 1950s to the early 1960s, pediatric centers in Europe, Australia, and North America reported the infrequent occurrence of…
Infections of the Oral Cavity and Nasopharynx Pharyngitis, Retropharyngeal Cellulitis, and Retropharyngeal Abscess Neonates with bacterial infection of the oropharynx may present with pharyngeal inflammation with or without exudate or with retropharyngeal cellulitis or abscess. Clinical signs and symptoms include respiratory…
Acknowledgment Drs. S. Michael Marcy, Carol Baker and Debra L. Palazzi contributed to this chapter in earlier editions. The authors are indebted to these scholars for their roles in the preparation of this chapter. Bacterial sepsis in the neonate is…
Mother’s milk delivered naturally through breastfeeding has been the sole source of infant nutrition in mammalian species for millions of years. Since human beings learned to domesticate cattle about 10,000 years ago, nonhuman mammalian milk also has been used to…
The human fetus and neonate are unduly susceptible to infection with a wide variety of microbes, many of which are not pathogenic in more mature individuals. This susceptibility results from limitations of both innate and adaptive (antigen-specific) immunity and their…
Overview Obstetric infections remain an important and potentially preventable contributor to maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. Intraamniotic infection (IAI) is associated with 20% of all preterm births (PTBs) and 50% of extreme PTBs at 28 weeks of gestation or…