The main target populations for listeriosis are:
pregnant women/fetuses/neonates - perinatal and neonatal infections;
persons immunocompromised by, for example, corticosteroids, anticancer drugs, graft
suppression therapy, AIDS;
cancer patients, particularly leukemic;
(less frequently reported) diabetic, cirrhotic, asthmatic, and ulcerative colitis patients;
the elderly;
healthy people – some reports suggest that healthy people are at risk, and that antacids or
cimetidine may predispose them to the infection. Some studies suggested that healthy,
uncompromised people could develop the disease, particularly if the food eaten was
heavily contaminated with L. monocytogenes.