Open AccessInfluence of Vaginal Flora on Body Temperature During the Puerperium
Author(s) -
Jacobsen Stig
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
acta obstetricia et gynecologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.401
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1600-0412
pISSN - 0001-6349
DOI - 10.3109/00016347109157317
Subject(s) - medicine , vaginal flora , puerperal infection , obstetrics , caesarean section , trichomonas vaginalis , evening , vaginal delivery , pregnancy , rupture of membranes , vaginal smear , gynecology , gestation , biology , physics , bacterial vaginosis , astronomy , estrous cycle , genetics
Vaginal smears from 542 pregnant women were studied 4 weeks before expected term. 70 patients were subsequently excluded because of Caesarean section, manual removal of the placenta, or fever caused by extragenital infection during the puerperium. The smears were classified as suggested by Wied. 56% showed no infection (A), 14% showed a predominance of Bacillus vaginalis Döderlein (B), 7% showed cocci (C), 11% showed Trichomonas vaginalis (D), and in 12% mixed infection was found (E). The non‐infected (A + B) and the infected (C + D + E) patients were divided into 4 groups each, according to whether more or less than 12 hours had elapsed from rupture of the membranes to delivery and whether < or ≥ 3 pelvic examinations had been performed after rupture of the membranes. The mean temperature graph for the “infected” and the “non‐infected” patients in the various groups was compared, but no significant differences were demonstrated. Nine patients developed puerperal fever, i.e. a rectal evening temperature exceeding 38°C, after the first day which could not be ascribed to an extragenital focus. Four of these patients had normal vaginal flora antenatally, while five had evidence of antenatal infection. On statistical calculation, however, puerperal fever was not significantly more common among patients with infected than in those with non‐infected vaginal smears. Two infants developed fever after birth. Both mothers had non‐infected vaginal smears.