Fatal Salmonella enteritidis sepsis acquired prenatally in a premature infant.

BACKGROUND: Before the advent of antibiotic therapy, Salmonella typhi infection during pregnancy was associated with a high incidence of fetal and neonatal death. Little information is available about the risk to the fetus or the newborn of a pregnant woman infected by non-typhoid salmonella, and treatment recommendations do not exist. CASE: We report a case of transplacental infection of a fetus by non-typhoid salmonella in a woman with gastroenteritis. Salmonella enteritidis was cultured from stool of the pregnant woman, who had diarrhea and fever before cesarean was performed at 29 weeks' gestation. The premature girl died 4 hours after birth from septic shock. Salmonella enteritidis was cultured from blood cultures and swabs of the premature infant and from the placenta and uterus.
CONCLUSION: This observation argues in favor of antibiotic treatment for non-typhoid salmonella infection in pregnancy because of the risk of transplacental infection of the fetus.