Advanced Maternal Age, Diabetes, and Elevated CRP Increase Risk of Neonatal Conjunctivitis: Study
A case-control study has found that advanced maternal age, maternal diabetes, elevated maternal C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and male sex of the newborn were independently associated with an increased risk of neonatal Conjunctivitis (NC). The findings highlight the importance of recognizing these maternal and neonatal risk factors during pregnancy and after birth, as they may help clinicians identify infants at higher risk earlier and enable closer postnatal monitoring and timely intervention. The study was published in BMC Pediatrics by Melike B. and colleagues.
This study population involved neonates born in all gestational ages from 34 weeks up to 42 weeks gestation during a delivery period of three years starting from January 2022 up to December 2024, with the data analysis performed by 2026. A total of 203 neonates who had been clinically confirmed to have active conjunctivitis within their first 28 days of birth were classified as active cases. On the other hand, 355 neonates who did not suffer from any form of ocular infection were randomly selected as controls, with an even source population during delivery.
The research team was able to gather the complete data on the mother’s history, obstetric history, newborn’s history, and baseline laboratory results from verified electronic medical records. In order to distinguish correlation from risk factors, the research team conducted both univariable and multivariable logistic regression.
Key findings:
- Based on initial baseline tracking, it was observed that the babies with the development of conjunctivitis were more likely to be males, possessed less average gestational age, were characterized by more instances of being premature, and had lower average Apgar scores as compared to those without any health issues.
- The average maternal age, maternal diabetes, and maternal baseline CRP were significantly higher in the group of mothers of babies developing eye infections.
- As per multivariate logistic regression analysis, each increase in a year of maternal age independently increased the likelihood of infection of a baby by 8%, which is indicated through an adjusted odds ratio (OR) equal to 1.08 (95% CI, 1.03–1.13; p < 0.05).
- The maternal diabetes proved to be a particularly strong independent predictor of eye infections in newborns, increasing the risk by more than twice, and resulting in an odds ratio (OR) equal to 2.64 (95% CI, 1.17–5.94; p < 0.05).
- There was an almost twofold increase in the rate of conjunctivitis among male babies as compared to females, which is evidenced by OR equal to 1.84 (95% CI, 1.24–2.75; p < 0.05).
In summary, in the current case–control study, advanced maternal age, maternal diabetes, increased maternal levels of CRP, and male sex have independently been identified as risk factors for NC. Knowledge of such factors will be helpful for early detection and monitoring of vulnerable babies after birth. The results from this three-year database analysis have become an invaluable empirical basis of contemporary perinatal medicine, showing that neonatal eyesight is tightly related to the state of mother long before childbirth.
Reference:
Atar, M.B., Hançerlioğulları, N., Özdemir, Ö. et al. Birth and neonatal risk factors associated with neonatal conjunctivitis: a retrospective case–control study. BMC Pediatr (2026). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07202-w
