Iiyambo, Olivia-Joan Ndahambelela2023-02-092023-02-092022https://hdl.handle.net/10539/34448A research report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Medicine in Obstetrics and Gynaecology to the Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2022Objective This study aimed to describe maternal risk factors, presentations, peripartum findings and pregnancy outcomes in listeria infected pregnant women. Methods A cross-sectional retrospective descriptive study was performed and the records of 51 pregnant women infected with listeriosis that had delivered between 01/02/2016 and 28/02/2018 at three tertiary care hospitals in Johannesburg, South Africa were assessed. The diagnosis of listeriosis was made on maternal/neonatal sampled blood or tissue cultures. Results Forty-eight (82.3%) listeria infections of maternal and neonatal listeriosis were diagnosed on blood culture. The median gestational age at diagnosis was at a preterm gestation of 33 (20 -43) weeks. Twenty-eight women (54.9%) had normal vaginal deliveries. Precipitous labour was described in 18 (39%) of these women. Fetal distress was the indication for caesarean section in 22 (41.2%) women. Meconium-stained liquor was found in 21 (61.7%) women at the time of delivery. The category of very low birth weight had 14 (27.4%) neonates with an Apgar score of <7 at 5 minutes. Maternal morbidities included chorioamnionitis (5.8%) and puerperal infections (13.7%). Conclusion Symptoms for listeriosis were non-specific and diagnosis was detected on blood culture sampling. Risk factors for listeriosis included HIV seropositivity and were found to be associated with puerperal infections.enThesis