Clinical Research Directory

Inclusion Criteria: * Pregnant women age 18-49 years who are scheduled for elective CS at term, are recruited at 36 weeks of gestation during a visit for the assessment of mode of delivery at Oulu university Hospital, Oulu, Finland. Exclusion Criteria: * Use of regular immunosuppressive biological medication; inflammatory bowel disease in the mother; immunodeficiency disorder of the mother or any first-degree family member of the unborn baby; known or suspected major fetal congenital abnormality; travel outside Europe, the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, or New Zealand within the last three months; and antibiotic treatment within three months of delivery (excluding prophylactic cefuroxime - or an alternative in case of allergy - administered prior to the elective cesarean section). * Infant exclusion criteria are preterm birth (birth before 37 weeks of gestation), birth weight below 2500 g, admission to neonatal intensive care unit, need for respiratory support or antibiotic treatment of the newborn before discharge. In case of a suspected infection or newborn screening result for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is out of the normal range, of the newborn the randomization code can be opened.