Lysteria Monocytogenes Infection during Monochorionic Twin Pregnancy: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Abstract

Listeriosis is a rare but severe foodborne disease caused by Listeria Monocytogenes (LM), a small facultative intracellular bacillus. When occurring in pregnant women, it can be vertically transmitted to the fetus and the newborn. Infected women usually display aspecific and mild symptoms, and rarely develop the severe forms of the disease (such as neurolisteriosis). On the contrary, fetal and neonatal listeriosis can lead to complications such as fetal loss, preterm birth, neonatal sepsis, and respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Prompt diagnosis is one of the main challenges because of the aspecific presentation of the disease; therapy relies on antibiotics that reach high intracellular concentration and can penetrate and pass the placenta reaching the fetus. Herein we report an infrequent case of LM infection involving a woman with monochorionic diamniotic twin pregnancy, followed by a comprehensive review of the available literature on listeriosis in pregnancy.

Keywords: listeriosis; neonatal care; pregnancy; twins.