ABSTRACT
Pregnancy is associated with impaired T-cell-mediated immunity putting the woman at
risk for infectious diseases not typically seen in immunocompetent individuals. When
maternal infection is severe, and when a primary herpesvirus infection is acquired
during pregnancy, there is a risk of fetal loss, maternal death, neonatal death, or
congenital abnormalities from intrauterine infection. In this review, the authors
emphasize specific neurologic infectious diseases that occur in pregnancy, the safety
of the antimicrobial therapy of these diseases during pregnancy, as well as the congenital
and neonatal sequelae of infection.
KEYWORDS
Listeria monocytogenes, herpes simplex virus - varicella zoster virus - cytomegalovirus - toxoplasmosis -
West Nile virus - H1N1
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Kelly J BaldwinM.D.
PGY 3 Resident, Department of Neurology, West Virginia University
P.O. Box 9180, Morgantown, WV 26506
Email: kbaldwin@hsc.wvu.edu
