Abstract
BackgroundListeria monocytogenes causes the foodborne infection listeriosis. Pregnant women, infants and immunocompromised children are at increased risk for infection. The aim of this study was to describe the trends in the epidemiology of disease notifications and hospital admissions due to listeriosis in pregnant women aged 15 to 45 years and children aged less than 15 years in New Zealand (NZ) from 1997 to 2016.MethodsIn this population-based descriptive study, listeriosis notification and hospitalization rates from 1997 to 2016 were analyzed. Notification data were extracted from the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR) Notifiable Diseases Database (EpiSurv) and hospitalization data were extracted from the National Minimum Dataset (NMDS). Pregnant women aged 15 to 45 years and children less than 15 years of age were included. Subgroup analysis was conducted for age and ethnicity. Outcomes of infection were described.ResultsIn the 20-year period considered, there were 147 pregnancy-associated cases of listeriosis either notified to ESR (n = 106) and/or coded in the NMDS (n = 99), giving a crude incidence rate of 12.3 (95% CI 10.4, 14.4) per 100,000 births. In addition, there were 22 cases in children aged 28 days to < 15 years (incidence =0.12, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.19 per 100,000). There were no trends observed over time in the incidence of pregnancy-associated listeriosis. Incidence rates of pregnancy-associated and childhood listeriosis were highest in people of Pacific and Asian ethnicity.ConclusionsNZ has a low incidence of listeriosis in pregnant women and children, however, the consequences of infection are frequently severe. Those of Pacific and Asian ethnicity have the highest rates of disease and future messaging around food safety should target these groups. This study provides important insights into the epidemiology of listeriosis in pregnant women and children in NZ.
Highlights
Listeria monocytogenes causes the foodborne infection listeriosis
Where illness has occurred in a pregnant woman, foetus or infant aged ≤28 days, the mother is notified as the case and the disease is recorded as pregnancy-associated
Hospital admissions for listeriosis were recorded in the National Minimum Dataset (NMDS) for 88 pregnant women (60%, n = 47 of whom were notified to Environmental Science and Research Ltd. (ESR)) and for fourteen neonates
Summary
Listeria monocytogenes causes the foodborne infection listeriosis. Infants and immunocompromised children are at increased risk for infection. The genus Listeria is composed of 17 species, of which Listeria monocytogenes is an opportunistic foodborne pathogen of humans and animals [2]. Both sporadic episodes and large outbreaks of disease have been attributed to this pathogen [3,4,5,6]. L. monocytogenes has a predilection to infect pregnant women, neonates, those who are immunocompromised and the elderly. Neonatal listeriosis may occur by vertical transmission of L. monocytogenes from mother to foetus, either by inhalation of infected amniotic fluid, trans-placentally from the maternal circulation, or by ascending colonization during birth [10]
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