Virus-hepatitis and pregnancy

Abstract

Itisto]ogical findings in four human embryos are described, whose mothers suffered from virus-hepatitis during the first trimenon of pregnancy. Destructions of the vessels (umbilical vein, aorta, carotic arteries, superior vena cava) and the endocardinm were found. ~rom these lesions necrotical material was transported into the brain, the kidney, and the intestinal-tract. The histological structure of the brain, the musculature, the spinal-cord, and the lungs was found to be changed. The nucleus of the crystallinelens was destroyed. Other organs showed no alterations. Multinucleated giant cells were seen in the liver, in the heart, in the lungs, in the brain, of all four embryos near the necrotic tissue.The effect of the hepatitis-virus on cells, the way of infection, the origin of the multinucleated giant cells, the observed hemorrhagic diathesis and the malformations, caused by the hepatitis-virus are discussed. The results are compared with the embryopathia rubeolica arid other virus diseases.