Methods

Based on a computerized study of discharge diagnoses, review of the records of the Infection Control Department, and questioning of infectious disease specialists, we identified cases of pregnant women with perinatal listeriosis who were treated at 4 hospitals (Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA; Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA; Mount Auburn Hospital, Cambridge, MA; and Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, RI) between January 1990 and January 2000. All cases were in pregnant women who had Listeria monocytogenes isolated from cultures of normally sterile body sites or vaginal swabs. In addition, we reviewed the English-language literature published between January 1980 and July 2000 to identify similar cases of listeriosis during pregnancy. For this review we conducted a computer-based search of MEDLINE (National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD), using the key words listeriosis and pregnancy. We complemented this computer-based search with manual search of Index Medicus (National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD) and by cross-referencing published articles. We excluded duplicate cases and reports without adequate clinical data. In the evaluation of antimicrobial therapy we did not include antibiotics used for 2 or fewer days in our calculations.

Results