Abstract: A review was made of the clinical history and postmortem diagnosis in 300 fetus and neonate deaths born after 28 weeks' gestation from 1978 to 1981. Pneumonia accounted for the highest proportion of deaths (26.67%).Experimental study on pneumonia of fetal rabbit and 80 cases of pneumonia of the human fetus and neonate were reviewed.Perinatal pneumonia is classified histologically into 3 types:acute diffuse pneumonia; broncho-perjbronchial pneumonia and interstitial pneumon a. Almost all congenital intrauterine pneumonia are caused by the aspiration of infected amnio tic fluid and often associated with inflammation of the placenta and cord. Frozen section of the placenta and cord is necessary for an early diagnosis of pneumonia. The aspiration of meconium causes only a mild inflammatory reaction of the lung but does not canse pneumonia.