Typhoid fever in pregnancy: Probable intrauterine transmission of the disease

Abstract

A case of probable intrauterine typhoid fever in a baby born of a mother convalescent from typhoid is described. The principal observations of significance were: the high agglutinin content of the breast milk against typhoid fever; the presence of typhoid bacilli in the baby's stools; and the carrier state of the mother and baby. Typhoid organisms were found in the maternal bile obtained by duodenal drainage. Cholecystectomy was performed during the fifth post-partum week. The gall bladder contained stones and typhoid bacilli were cultured from the mucosa. In all probability, the infant formed its own agglutinins.