The Effect of Genital Mycoplasmas on Human Fetal Growth

Abstract

The relation between maternal genital colonization by mycoplasmas and fetal growth was examined in a study of 195 women. Swabs were taken from the endocervix on three occasions during pregnancy and once post partum. Ureaplasma urealyticum organisms (ureaplasmas) were recovered from 42.7 per cent of Caucasian women and from 34.6 per cent of Asian women at their first antenatal visit. These isolation rates remained similar throughout pregnancy, although there was a decrease in isolation after delivery. Mycoplasma hominis was recovered from 6 5 per cent of Caucasians and from 1 1 5 per cent of Asians at their first antenatal visit and these rates remained fairly constant during pregnancy and after delivery. Caucasian women colonized by ureaplasmas had a longer mean length of gestation (p < 0.025) than non-colonized women. Furthermore, the colonized women gave birth to infants who had a statistically significant greater mean birth weight and a greater mean birth weight-for-dates than those of the non-colonized Caucasians. There was no correlation between gestational length, birth weight, or birth weightfor-dates and genital colonization of Asian mothers by ureaplasmas or M . hominis. It is clear that ureaplasmas are not associated with low birth weight in our population.

A comparison of cervical cytomegalovirus (CMV) excretion in gynaecological patients and post-partum women

“…Although a slight fall in the isolation rate of Mycoplasma hominis after pregnancy was reported by Ross et al (13), there was no difference between the recovery rate of Mycoplasma hominis in our two groups; five of 49 (10.2 per cent) post-partum women and 23 of 207 (11.1 per cent) gynaecological patients were positive. It is therefore unlikely that the presence of these organisms affected the rate of CMV isolation in either group.…”

Prevalence and significance ofMycoplasma hominisandUreaplasma urealyticumin the urines of a non-venereal disease population

“…Thus, 72 % of men and 52 % of women whose urines contained 3 105 bacteria/ml had 51 to > 1000 urinary cells. The frequency of ureaplasmas and M. hominis in the urines of the younger women was similar to their frequency in the vagina, observed previously (Ross et al 1981). Indeed, the presence of these organisms in urine may reflect, at least to some extent, contamination from the vagina.…”

The role of mycoplasmas, ureaplasmas and chlamydiae in the genital tract of women presenting in spontaneous early preterm labour

“…Isolation of chlamydiae was unique to the study group. The prevalence of genital mycoplasmas in the control group was almost identical to that seen in normal antenatal patients of similar social class in a study at a district general hospital in the same region in which the current study was conducted-ureaplasmas, M. horninis and chlamydiae being present in 42%, 9% and none of the normal subjects, respectively (Ross et al, 1981). This suggests that the figures presented for the prevalence of micro-organisms in the control group in the current study are real and that the difference between the control and study groups is not spurious.…”

“…Specimens from the study patients were taken at the first vaginal examination after admission in preterm labour and those from control patients in the 24 h before elective delivery. A high vaginal specimen to be examined for ureaplasmas and M. hominis was taken with a cotton-wool swab which was expressed in 1.5 ml of mycoplasmal transport medium (Taylor-Robinson and Furr, 1981); this was deemed to be a ten-fold dilution. Polypropylene swabs to obtain surface epithelial cells were used to take specimens from the endocervix for chlamydia1 culture and were expressed in sucrose-phosphate transport medium (2SP) (Thomas et al, 1977).…”

“…All specimens in transport medium were stored in liquid nitrogen and examined as a group at the end of the study. The genital mycoplasmas were isolated and identified with media and procedures described previously (Taylor-Robinson and Furr, 1981) and the numbers of these organisms (titres) are expressed as colour-changing units (ccu)/ml of transport medium.…”