[Listeria monocytogenes in women of reproductive age]

Listeria monocytogenes (LM) is gram-positive bacteria linear shaped which grows good also at refrigerator temperature (4 degrees C). The bacteria is resistant on high and low temperatures. This bacteria can be found in the dirt, rotted vegetation, vegetables and fruit, milk and dairy products, and also in the meat and processed meat. This bacteria cause disease called Listeriosis. This bacteria attacks at first people with weak immune system like infants, pregnant women, people with chronic diseases, people with HIV and people who are 60 and over. Pregnant women can transfer Listeria through the placenta, from mother to child and that can cause premature delivery, premature birth, early rupture of placenta or still born.

Find out if there is serological respond by female patients in the reproductive age who had spontaneous abortion and female patients in the reproductive age who never had the spontaneous abortion. By agglutination serologic method it had been researched if there is any antibody on Listeria monocytogenes.

Two groups were included in testing: experimental and control group with a total of 60 patients. In experimental group there were 18 (60%) positive samples. In control group there were 8 (26.70%) positive samples.

The results investigations have shown that there is serological respond to Listeria monocytogenes in the women of reproductive age. The number of positive patients was greater in women who had spontaneous abortion compared to women who never had the spontaneous abortion.