Neonatal infection is a term used to describe any microbial infection being documented in the first
month of life. Neonatal infections and sepsis are the major problem in preterm neonates who have
an increased incidence of infection. The incidence is significantly higher in neonates of low weight,
e.g., less than 1000g compared with neonates of 1000-2000g. The incidence of neonatal bacterial
infection depends on geographic area and may vary from country to country as well as within the
same country. According to the reported incidences, bacteria causing neonatal infections may widely
differ among different countries according to the environmental factors, so, the pathogens most often
implicated in neonatal infections in developing countries differ from those seen in developed
countries. Overall, in most developing countries, Gram-negative bacteria remain the major cause of
infection and are mainly represented by Klebsiella spp., Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas spp.,
Enterobacter spp. and Salmonella spp., Gram positive organisms, represented by S. aureus,
coagulase negative streptococci (CoNS), S. pneumoniae and S. pyogenes were also isolated from
neonatal infections, whilst, Group-B Streptococci are generally rare.
أ.د. أمل طالب عطيه السعدي | Prof. Dr. Amal Talib Atiyah Al Sa'ady | 5844