Pneumococcal meningitis and endophthalmitis in a newborn

To the Editor.— Keyes et al recently reported an association between meningococcemia and endocervical infection in two patients and remarked on the uniqueness of this association. 1 We encountered a case in which a relatively asymptomatic pneumococcal infection of the endocervical area of a mother led to fatal pneumococcal meningitis in a live born infant who remained asymptomatic until 5 days of age. Report of a Case.— A 5-day-old female infant was born at term via low forceps delivery to a 23-year-old primigravida who had had an uneventful pregnancy except for mild preeclampsia. The child, with an initial apgar core of 3, required suction and oxygen, but within five minutes the respirations were normal. She received silver nitrate prophylaxis to the eyes, and on day 4 the child was discharged as a healthy newborn. The mother was disturbed by the foul odor of the vaginal discharge, but was afebrile and