| Vertically transmitted infection | |
|---|---|
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| Micrograph of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection of the placenta (CMV placentitis), a vertically transmitted infection: The characteristic large nucleus of a CMV-infected cell is seen off-centre at the bottom right of the image, H&E stain. | |
| Specialty | Pediatrics  |
A vertically transmitted infection is an infection caused by pathogenic bacteria or viruses that use mother-to-child transmission, that is, transmission directly from the mother to an embryo, fetus, or baby during pregnancy or childbirth. It can occur when the mother has a pre-existing disease or becomes infected during pregnancy. Nutritional deficiencies may exacerbate the risks of perinatal infections. Vertical transmission is important for the mathematical modelling of infectious diseases, especially for diseases of animals with large litter sizes, as it causes a wave of new infectious individuals.[1]
- ^ von Csefalvay, Chris (2023), "Simple compartmental models", Computational Modeling of Infectious Disease, Elsevier, pp. 19–91, doi:10.1016/b978-0-32-395389-4.00011-6, ISBN 978-0-323-95389-4, retrieved 5 March 2023