Severe Pasteurella multocida infections in pregnant women.

We report 2 cases of severe infections due to Pasteurella multocida, both occurring during pregnancy in previously healthy women. Both women had contact with animals (dog and cat) but neither of them had been bitten. Apart from a slight decrease in IgG levels, no immunological defects could be detected. Both women had received oral phenoxymethylpenicillin in the early phase of the disease, but still fell ill with severe infections. One woman had meningitis while the other suffered from cellulitis with deep abscess formation.