Abstract

Mother-to-foetus transmissible infections can result in a variety of outcomes in the foetus, including hearing and vision loss, limb hypoplasia and developmental impairment. Such diseases can also cause intrauterine foetal demise, yet remain asymptomatic in others. As the variety of potential pathogens is wide, there is no specific guideline to follow.
A healthcare professional must take into account both the mother’s and foetus’s traits. Gestational age at the time of infection and primary as opposed to recurrent exposure to the pathogen are only a few of the factors that determine how severe the effects of these infections will be for the child. Moreover, the rate of transmission from the mother to the foetus depends on the gestational
age and varies according to the pathogen, emphasizing once more the importance of the case-centred approach. It is essential to understand the relevance of disease prevention in these cases – without an affected mother there can be no affected foetus.