Infectious diseases pose a serious health risk for pregnant women and their infants because they are easily transmitted from the mother to the child. This process of passing the virus from mother to baby is called mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) or perinatal transmission. Women infected with a communicable disease must take certain precautions to prevent transmitting it their child. Some women do not experience symptoms of being infected so it vital that the mother is tested for a wide range of communicable diseases as part of her prenatal care—the sooner the mother is diagnosed and treated, the higher the chance the fetus will not become infected.
Each disease requires unique preventative measures but treatment include vaccination for the mother as well as the child. Some MTCT communicable diseases are so prevalent that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends as part of routine childhood immunizations, such as hepatitis B.
Each disease requires unique preventative measures but treatment include vaccination for the mother as well as the child. Some MTCT communicable diseases are so prevalent that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends as part of routine childhood immunizations, such as hepatitis B.
