SUMMARY
One hundred and ninety three samples from the conjuntival fornices of newborns during neonatal period were obtained and cultured to study the conjuntival anaerobic and facultative microbial normal flora.
During the neonatal period the newborns were divided in three groups: I - including newborns immediately after birth; II - from birth up to 15 days; III - newborns up to 28 days. In all those groups S. aureus was the most frequent microorganism isolated.
From 167 positive samples, 183 positive isolated bacteria were obtained. The total of 12 different bacteria species were identified with a predominance of facultative anaerobic bacteria. Among the facultative bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus was the most frequent, and Bacteroides sp was the most frequent among the anaerobic bacteria.
An increase of positive cultures with anaerobic bacteria was observed in the third group. It was demonstrated that there is a higher number of positive cultures with S. aureus isolation in newborns with (normal) delivery and with rupture of the membrane.
The present study demonstrated normal anaerobic and facultative conjuntival normal flora during neonatal period and revealed that the colonization started immediately after birth, and the number of positive cultures is related to the time of individual exposure.