We found out today that Em has tested positive for Group B Streptococcus. What does that mean?

Group B Strep (or GBS) is a type of bacteria that some people carry in their intestines. Carriers are usually unaware of this, and have no symptoms - they are carriers, but are not actually infected (this is the case with Em - she has no symptoms at all). The bacteria can sometimes spread out from the gut and colonise nearby areas. When this happens to a pregnant woman, there is a risk that the baby will become infected while it is being born.

GBS is the most common cause of life-threatening infections in newborn babies in the UK. It can lead to meningitis, septicemia, or other unpleasant conditions. Early onset GBS infection can kill a baby within a few hours of birth, whereas late onset infection can kill within the first few months.

Left untreated, a pregnant woman who carries a colonisation of GBS at the time of birth has a 1 in 300 chance of infecting the baby. Babies can also contract GBS even if the mother is not a carrier, but naturally the mother being a carrier brings a much greater risk.

In order to reduce the risk, antibiotics must be given to the mother intravenously as soon as labour starts, and every 4 hours during labour. This reduces the likelihood of the baby being infected to a 1 in 6000 chance.

Unfortunately, the NHS do not routinely screen for GBS! - in fact, nobody from the NHS has even mentioned to Em that it exists. Thankfully, we read about it elsewhere, and decided to get the test done privately (a free test is apparently available on the NHS for those deemed to be at high risk, but anyone else has to pay for a private test if they want one).

If you want to know more, here are some links:

http://www.cdc.gov/groupbstrep/general/gen_public_faq.htm (a US site, but clearer and easier to use than the UK one, below)
http://www.gbss.org.uk/