Letter V

Vertical transmission

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Passage of a disease-causing agent (a pathogen) vertically from mother directly to baby during the perinatal period, the period immediately before and after birth.

The perinatal period is defined in diverse ways.

Depending on the definition, it starts at the 20th to 28th week of gestation and ends 1 to 4 weeks after birth.

A vertically transmitted pathogen might, for example, be HIV (the human immunodeficiency virus).

Transmission might occur across the placenta or in the breast milk.

Also called perinatal transmission

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