Intrauterine infection in the baby in many cases causes symptoms in the baby during childbirth or in the first few hours after, such as difficulty in breathing, apathy and fever, for example.
These infections, known as congenital infections, such as rubella, hepatitis, or toxoplasmosis, can seriously affect the baby and cause developmental delays and, therefore, should be detected early in most cases with the use of antibiotics.
Main symptoms of infection in the baby
A newborn or infant up to 1 month of age who developed intrauterine infection has symptoms such as:
- Difficulty in breathing;
- Skin and lips purplish and in some cases yellowish skin;
- Little suction;
- Apathy and slow movements;
- Fever;
- Low temperature;
- Vomiting and diarrhea.
In many cases the disease does not cause symptoms and later the baby is developmentally delayed, and its main causes include infections of the pregnant woman like rubella, HIV virus, hepatitis B or toxoplasmosis, for example.
Consequences of intrauterine infection in the baby
These infections can cause serious problems like abortion, dead baby at birth, developmental anomalies, prematurity or even development of severe sequelae during growth.
Causes of Intrauterine Infection
Generally the intrauterine infection that affects the baby is caused due to prolonged labor, because the bacteria present in the vaginal canal rise to the uterus and reach the baby who has his immune system still underdeveloped and easily contaminated.
In addition, intrauterine infection can also occur through the placenta, as occurs for example when the nonimmune woman consumes contaminated foods such as toxoplasmosis, for example.
Treatment for intrauterine infection
To treat the infection in most cases the delivery is by cesarean section, performed diagnostic tests on the baby as a blood test and applied drugs directly into the vein as antibiotics.
