A recent study led by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago has identified antibiotic-resistant gut bacteria in a significant number of healthy birthing mothers and their newborns. The research, published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases, is the first of its kind in the United States to examine this issue.
The study found that 38% of bacterial strains resistant to ceftriaxone transmitted from mother to infant were E. coli, a bacterium known for causing urinary and bloodstream infections as well as meningitis in infants. Ampicillin-resistant bacteria were present in 91% of mothers and 76% of infants, while ceftriaxone-resistant bacteria appeared in 12% of mothers and 7% of infants. The study excluded premature births and mothers who had been exposed to antibiotics during pregnancy.
“Perinatal transmission and early life colonization with ceftriaxone-resistant bacteria are important, since infections with these bacteria are associated with higher morbidity and healthcare costs,” said lead author Leena B. Mithal, MD, infectious diseases expert at Lurie Children’s and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Our finding that healthy pregnant people had a significant burden of these bacteria was surprising, as it was a much higher percentage than previously reported for high-income countries. It shows that this is truly a global problem with potential adverse impacts to neonatal health.”
Researchers collected 293 maternal rectal samples and 261 infant stool samples within the first ten days after birth. Whole genome sequencing analysis showed that the resistant bacterial strains found in mother-infant pairs were genetically identical in most cases.
“We found that the bacteria in the mother-infant pairs were genetically identical in most cases, which provides more proof that they are shared between mothers and infants,” said senior author Mehreen Arshad, MD, MBBS, infectious diseases researcher at Lurie Children’s and Adjunct Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
“Our study is unique in that it combined clinical, epidemiological and lab research,” she said. “In our future work, we are examining how long the antibiotic-resistant bacteria persist in the gut of infants, as well as how they impact infant health and overall growth,” said Dr. Arshad.
Funding for the research came from a Dixon Translational Research Grant, the Buffett Institute for Global Affairs at Northwestern University, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases/K23 AI139337 (L.B.M.), K08AI123524 (M.A.), and support from the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.
Dr. Mithal holds an endowed research scholar position at Lurie Children’s focused on neonatology research; Dr. Arshad also serves as an Associate Professor at Aga Khan University in Karachi, Pakistan.
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago is recognized nationally for excellence across pediatric specialties by U.S. News & World Report according to its official website (https://www.luriechildrens.org). The hospital operates its main campus downtown along with multiple outpatient centers throughout the region (https://www.luriechildrens.org), providing care across more than 70 pediatric specialties (https://www.luriechildrens.org). As the primary teaching affiliate for Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (https://www.luriechildrens.org), Lurie Children’s emphasizes family-centered care addressing medical and developmental needs (https://www.luriechildrens.org) while advancing child health through research via Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute.
