Abstract
Ureaplasma urealyticum is a common inhabitant of the urogenital tract of pregnant women and over the years, have been often implicated in chorioamnionitis, preterm birth, and perinatal morbidity and mortality. In up to 50% of infants<34 week of gestational age, Ureaplasma urealyticum is isolated from urine, blood, CSF, tracheal aspirates, pleural fluid and lung tissue, causing respiratory insufficiency and development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia. This study examines the perinatal charateristics, respiratory morbidity and the usefulness of erythromycin in the newborn infants, those colonized with ureaplasma urealyticum.
Population and methods: A urine specimen for ureaplasma urealyticum culture was obtained from 90 infants admitted consecutively to NICU in Seoul national university Bundang hospital immediately after birth and their medical records were reviewed. Placental biopsy was performed to examine the presence of histologic chorioamnionitis. For all infants colonized with ureaplasma urealyticum, we treated with intravenous erythromycin for 2 weeks.
Results: 13 (14.4%) infants had growth of Ureaplasma urealyticum, 77 (85.6%) had negative culture results. Mean gestational age (32¡3/4 2 weeks vs 32¡3/4 3 weeks) and birth weight (1.83¡3/4 0.53kg vs 1.83¡3/4 0.65kg) were not different between the two groups (p=0.412, p=0.739). The presence of acute respiratory morbidity and the development of symptomatic bronchopulmonary dysplasia were not different (OR 0.225 CI 0.57–0.883 vs OR 1.509 CI 0.381–5.984) even though the radiologic abnormalities suggestive of bronchopulmonary dysplasia were higher in infants colonized with ureaplasma (OR 39.33 CI 4.782–323.509). Chorioamnionitis (OR 9.167 CI 1.887–44.521) and the level of CRP (0.51¡3/4 1.15mg/dL vs 0.17¡3/4 0.35mg/dL, p=0.029) showed the significant association with ureaplasma colonization.
Conclusion: This data indicates colonization with ureaplasma can be explained to be closely associated with chorioamnionitis and perinatal morbidity as well as development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia. And therapy with erythromycin might play a role to prevent symptomatic bronchopulmonary dysplasia, but our data needs further case-control study to support the effects of therapy.
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Shin, Y., Shin, Y., Kim, B. et al. 345 Perinatal Characteristics and the Effect of Erythromycin in the Neonate Colonized with Ureaplasma Urealyticum. Pediatr Res 58, 413 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200508000-00374
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200508000-00374