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SUMMARY The in vivo distribution of enterally administered human milk leucocytes labelled with indium hydroxyquinoline (1"'in) was studied in premature baboons. The animals were killed at 72 hours of age and tissue samples examined for radioactivity. Maximum activity was found in the luminal contents, and activity in the liver and spleen was higher than in bone marrow, the site where free isotope is normally deposited. These findings suggest that some intact milk leucocytes may cross from the gastrointestinal tract into the neonatal circulation. Also the high activity in gastrointestinal tissue that had been washed several times indicates that leucocytes adhere to mucosa or lie intramurally. We speculate that the presence of leucocytes in the gastrointestinal tract 60 hours after a single breast feed can provide an important defence mechanism against infection.Research continues to show the scientific benefits of breast feeding.' These benefits are not limited to nutritional elements alone, as breast milk contains many active immunological components including immunoglobulins and numerous cells.2 By transfer of these factors, breast feeding has been implicated in maintaining immunological homoeostasis in the neonatal intestine durin the period of immaturity of the immune system.

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Objective To investigate the influence of the increased use of intrapartum chemoprophylaxis on the incidence of vertically transmitted neonatal sepsis. Methods Multiple institutional databases were queried for the number of cases in which intrapartum antibiotics were used, the obstetric risk factors that were present, and the number of resultant cases of neonatal sepsis that occurred for deliveries from 1992 through 1997. Intrapartum antibiotic use was compared between the first and fourth quarter of 1997. Comparisons were made between the years 1992–1996 and 1997 for the incidence of the various pathogens causing neonatal sepsis; group B streptococcus (GBS), gram‐negative sepsis, and others. Results We found a significant increase in intrapartum chemoprophylaxis between the first and fourth quarters of 1997 corresponding to the increased physician awareness of published guidelines. As expected, the incidence of neonatal GBS sepsis was drastically reduced (from 1.7/1000 live births to 0 in 3730 births, P = 0.02). Unfortunately, there was a concomitant increase in the incidence of gram‐negative sepsis (0.29/1000 vs. 1.3/1000, P = .02). The overall incidence of neonatal sepsis remained unchanged (2.7/1000 vs. 2.1/1000, P = .69). Conclusions Published guidelines have encouraged physicians to increase the use of intrapartum chemoprophylaxis to reduce vertical transmission of GBS. This study confirms the efficacy of this approach. Unfortunately, this reduction comes at the cost of increasing the incidence of ampicillin‐resistant gram‐negative neonatal sepsis with a resultant increased mortality. These data provide compelling evidence that the policy of providing ampicillin chemoprophylaxis in selected patients needs to be reconsidered. Infect. Dis. Obstet. Gynecol. 7:210–213, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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