Characteristics and influence of Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma cultures in amniotic fluid on perinatal outcomes

Abstract

Aim To investigate the effects of Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma cultured in amniotic fluid on perinatal characteristics in preterm delivery between 22 and 33 weeks of gestation. Methods The study was conducted in a tertiary perinatal center and involved 38 pregnant women who had undergone amniocentesis to evaluate intrauterine infection due to preterm labor or premature rupture of membranes. The subjects were divided into three groups based on the culture results: negative (Negative Group, n = 24), positive for Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma (M/U Group, n = 6), and positive for other pathogens (Other Pathogens Group, n = 8). One‐way analysis of variance was used to compare the three groups. Results The incidence of histological chorioamnionitis and neonatal sepsis was significantly different among the three groups (the Negative Group and the Other Pathogens Group, P < 0.01; the M/U Group and the Other Pathogens Group, P = 0.03). In the M/U Group, no infants had sepsis, severe intraventricular hemorrhage, cystic periventricular leukomalacia, or poor neurological outcomes, but one infant developed bronchopulmonary dysplasia and needed home oxygen treatment. Although one died of gastrorrhexis, the remaining five patients had normal brain magnetic resonance imaging findings and developed normally. Conclusion The presence of Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma isolated from amniotic fluid did not cause neonatal sepsis or poor prognosis. In some infants, there was no histological chorioamnionitis in the placenta. These pathogens thus seem to be less invasive than any other microbes with respect to perinatal outcomes.

Amniotic fluid Gram stain and interleukin‐6 can predict early‐onset neonatal sepsis

“…and Mycoplasma spp. developed EONS in previous studies 25,26 and in our study. In some studies, 27–30 EONS developed in only Ureaplasma spp.…”

<b><i>Ureaplasma</i></b>-Driven Neuroinflammation in Neonates: Assembling the Puzzle Pieces

“…Other studies, however, did not confirm such a correlation [6, 7, 23-28] (Table 1). Similarly, a significant association between prenatal and postnatal Ureaplasma infection and PVL has not been verified so far [6-8, 22, 23, 25, 26] (Table 1). A study addressing long-term neurodevelopmental outcome in preterm infants, however, found intrauterine Ureaplasma infection to be associated with cerebral palsy and psychomotor delay at the age of 24 months [26].…”