British scientists believe that pregnant women are particularly susceptible to Haemophilus influenzae, which is associated with an increased risk of pregnancy loss, premature birth and stillbirth..

These are the results of a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association..

Haemophilus influenzae, also known as Pfeiffer's bacillus, is a Gram-negative bacterium that can cause many serious diseases such as pneumonia, meningitis, and septic arthritis..

According to a research team led by Sarah Collins of Public Health England, previous studies have shown that women are at high risk of H. influenzae during pregnancy. But they note that this association was based on a small number of cases..

To explore this issue in more detail, British scientists analyzed the outcomes of infection with H. influenzae in women aged 15-44 from England and Wales over a 4-year period.

The data was collected from physicians who dealt with these cases from 2009 to 2012.. Physicians were asked to complete a clinical questionnaire 3 months after the patient's treatment..

The results of the analysis showed that the number of women with laboratory-confirmed H. influenzae was quite low: 0.5 per 100,000 women (171 cases). However, 71 of these women were pregnant at the time of infection.. This percentage can hardly be called a coincidence..

Scientists have found that pregnant women are much more susceptible to infection with a non-encapsulated (atypical) strain of Haemophilus influenzae..

Among women who were infected with nonencapsulated coli in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, 93.6% experienced pregnancy loss and 6.4% had very early preterm births, often with poor outcomes..

Among women who were infected with an atypical strain in the second half of pregnancy, 28.6% had preterm birth, and 7.1% had a stillbirth..

H infection. influenzae should be quickly diagnosed and treated aggressively.

The researchers note that this is not just a serious infection, but a potential cause of severe complications and poor pregnancy outcomes..

Compared with national rates in the United Kingdom, women infected with Haemophilus influenzae had a 2.9 times higher rate of pregnancy loss.

The scientists say: “Despite the fact that none of the pregnant women in this study died as a result of infection, the high risk of pregnancy loss makes H. influenzae is an important pathogen that needs to be identified early and treated aggressively."

They also note that only laboratory-confirmed cases of infection were included in the study.. This means that the results obtained should be considered as minimum.

In an accompanying article, Dr. Morven Edwards (Morven S.

Edwards of the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, says labs need to be vigilant about this pathogen, especially unencapsulated strains..

She adds that guidelines should be developed to ensure that doctors routinely test blood and other samples from pregnant patients for pathogens that can cause pregnancy loss, stillbirth, preterm birth and birth defects.. Haemophilus influenzae should also be on their list..

“Achieving these minimum goals will go a long way towards improving maternal and child health,” the researcher told a British publication..

medbe. en.