Chorioamnionitis and neurodevelopment

The Journal of Pediatrics
Volume 163, Issue 3 , Pages 613-615, September 2013

Alan H. Jobe

The association between clinical and/or histological chorioamnionitis and poor neurodevelopmental outcomes or death in newborns has been debated, with multiple positive and negative studies in the literature. This association for preterm birth perhaps is even more controversial. As more is learned about the types of infections that are associated with premature delivery, any interpretation of an outcome relative to a simple diagnosis of chorioamnionitis is inadequate. Some pregnancies are complicated by chronic and indolent infections with single or multiple organisms not normally considered to be pathogenic, and others result in preterm deliveries with clear pathogens. Inflammation-associated preterm labor may be primarily from the endometrium and minimally involve the fetus, or the fetus may mount a systemic inflammatory response.