Neonatal conjunctivitis, also known as
ophthalmia neonatorum, is a form of
conjunctivitis and a type of
neonatal infection contracted by newborns during
delivery. The baby's eyes are contaminated during passage through the birth canal from a mother infected with either
Neisseria gonorrhoeae or
Chlamydia trachomatis. Antibiotic ointment is typically applied to the newborn's eyes within 1 hour of birth as prevention against gonococcal ophthalmia. If left untreated it can cause
blindness.