Incidence of invasive CNS disease with Ureaplasma: where are we now?

We were interested to read the review by Rose Marie Viscardi in a recent edition of the Fetal and Neonatal about the role of Ureaplasma species in neonatal morbidities and outcome.1 The original study by the corresponding author and her colleagues performed at the University of Maryland Medical Center and Mercy Medical Center (Baltimore, USA) showed that invasive Ureaplasma species occurs commonly in very low birthweight infants and more prevalent than it was previously thought.2 The study states that cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was obtained within 72 h of birth in 189 neonates (60% of cohort) and Ureaplsama species were detected in 36 neonates (19%).2 Of note, the population was 72% African–American, and preterm labour occurred in 91% of cases. We know that Ureaplasma species are the most common bacteria implicated in human urogenital infections, including complications of pregnancy …