Poliomyelitis in Pregnancy, Fetus, and Newborn

IN THE FALL of 1954, a 20-year-old woman developed acute anterior poliomyelitis. She was at term, and the question of the fetus being affected before or at birth was raised. Also, nine days after diagnosis, when labor began, the question arose of whether she should be permitted upon the maternity service, and the neonate, in the nursery, of the local hospital. The mother had passed the seven-day isolation requirement of the state of California; it was felt that admission was reasonably safe. A healthy boy was born. On the second day of life this infant developed poliomyelitis. Eleven other infants, concurrently in the nursery, were given gamma globulin. There were no observed secondary cases. POLIOMYELITIS IN PREGNANCY Susceptibility to and incidence of paralytic poliomyelitis appear increased in pregnancy. In 95 cases collected by Aycock,* Fox and Sennett,³and Waaler,⁴wherein accurate comparison with the nongravid female population appeared