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TORCH Complex (aka TORCHES or the TORCH infections) is a medical acronym for a set of 5 congenital infections (i.e. that are passed from an infected mother to her fetus).
The diseases present similarly, involving the heart, skin, eye, and CNS. They all cause chorioretinitis, microcephaly, and focal cerebral calcification.
It is possible for genetic conditions (Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome) to present in a similar manner.[1][2]
TORCH or TORCHES infections are a group of infections that in a pregnant woman can lead to severe fetal anomalies or even fetal loss. They are a group of viral, and rarely bacterial infections, which gain access to the fetal bloodstream transplacentally via the chorionic villi. Hematogenous transmission may occur any time during gestation or occasionally -as with HIV and Hep B- at the time of delivery via maternal-to-fetal transfusion.[3] The mother often has a mild infection with few or no symptoms. TORCH is an acronym.
The infections are:
The “O” can stand for “other agents”, namely Hepatitis B, Syphilis, Varicella-Zoster Virus, HIV, and Parvovirus B19.
Listeria, E. coli and group B streptococci can also be acquired after membrane rupture and are the 3 most common causes of meningitis of the newborn.
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