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Childbirth

Share experiences and get support around labour, birth and recovery.

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Original poster

just been told am group B strep (GBS) positive, now very worried.

16 replies

muddywinter · 03/05/2005 16:05

hi, im 19 weeks pregnant, i have just been told that my urine sample came back positive for GBS and prescribed antibiotics. GBS not mentioned in any of the pregnancy books, the leaflet i have says you will have GBS for life! Also told will have to have iv antibiotics in labour! Leaflet says if baby becomes infected during birth, 10-20% die! arghh! panic! panic!
How do you catch GBS?
Has anyone else been found GBS positive, but had a healthy baby? how was labour with an iv?

OP posts:

Aragon · 03/05/2005 16:09

Hi hun,

Panic not. The most important thing is that they've found you have it. By giving antibiotics in labour the risk of the baby getting it are rare. They reckong (from my memory) that about 40% of the population carry this bug - it's usually found in the bowel but sometimes gets lost and turns up in the vagina and bladder. There is a website which I'll hunt out for you but don't worry - they know it's there and will ensure you have enough antibiotics to prevent it being passed to your baby.

Aragon · 03/05/2005 16:11

It's here

Aragon · 03/05/2005 16:15

Ought to also say that as I recall from my midwifery days you won't need to be attached to a drip for the whole labour. You may just need the IV for the antibiotics after which it can come down.

dizzymama · 03/05/2005 21:32

Don't panic, easy to say I know, was in your exact position with dd. Aragon is quite right, you don't have to be on drip throughout labour, they stick one of those shunts in your hand and top you up every few hours, you can still be very mobile. It's also true that the most important thing is that they know. Make sure you have a big sticker on your notes that tells anyone who looks that you are GBS positive, I also wrote it in huge red letters on top of my birth plan and dh was drilled into mentioning antibiotics to every passing midwife! If you have antibiotics then it's very very very very unlikely baby will become infected and I was told that even if she had it can be as easy as giving them antibiotics after birth (not wonderful I know, but a darn sight better than death!!) I could go on and on.... if you're still worried or just want to chat with someone else who has been through this then CAT me. HTH

AnnieSG · 03/05/2005 22:11

Wanted to echo Dizzymama's words there; it really is just important they know. I had this with my last pregnancy and was so relieved I wasn't actually attached to anything. Check out the Strep B support group at www.gbss.org.uk (sorry, brain too addled tonight to work out how to make a hyperlink!). Their brochure is actually the one they had at my hospital. Print it out and keep it with you when you get there. Really, you shouldn't worry about this now. Best of luck.

AnnieSG · 03/05/2005 22:12

Oops. Sorry, didn't realise that website was already (rather more clevely) offered!

tammybear · 03/05/2005 22:18

hi muddywinter, like the others say dont panic. i had GBS when I had dd, but they didnt find out til afterwards so I didnt have the antibiotics, and I was freaking out when they gave me a list of things to look out for! dd was fine, and so I had nothing to worry about. You know you have it, so they can give you antibiotics for your labour. I dont know how you get it, but I know it doesnt affect you. Might go look it up at that website given. But just wanted to share my story with you. x

lilybubble · 03/05/2005 23:17

I also had it, found out about 4 weeks before giving birth. It's quite bizarre how little information there is on it at first (like SPD, which I also had - why is there so little available on these afflictions!?) Anyway, as everyone else has said, it's most important that you know. The antibiotics are not a problem at all during labour - the shunt going in was more painful than anything else. DD was tested soon after birth, and they also insisted we would both have to stay in for at least 24 hours as a standard precaution. DD was and is absolutely fine.

Good luck, and really try not to worry, it's far more common than you can first imagine

butterflymum · 01/06/2005 10:42

Hello

In the past, many of you have asked how to help make others aware of the facts surrounding Group B Strep. Well, for the first time ever, Group B Strep Support Group plan to run a national Awareness Week campaign. This will run from Monday, 26 September to Sunday 2 October 2005.

How can you help? If you visit their site at Group B Strep Support you can click on the Red coloured 'Awareness Week' link in the menu. This will take you to a page with all the details and further links to download posters/forms.

I will post about this on a couple of the Pregnancy/Health threads too, as I know some mums there may not read this thread. If you are seeing it for the 2nd/3rd time I apologise, but I want to encourage as many interested mums as possible to help.

Thanks for taking the time to read this...hopefully many of you will feel able to help in some small way.

butterfly

krist · 01/06/2005 10:57

I had it in pregnacy dont worry you will just get antibiotics through a drip both my boys are just fine. had to stay in hospital for 24 hours with second just to be sure he was okay then was allowed home dont worry more importants things like prams clothes ect doctors do know what there doing

Lolasmum · 01/06/2005 12:12

Hi MW,
I've got it too. I'm currently 33+5 weeks pregnant and keep panicking so I know how you feel. But, the midwifes at my GP have been very calming. They told me that the important thing to do is to get to the hospital as soon as I go into labour as I will need the antibiotics for at least 4 hours before giving birth. This is my 2nd pregnancy.

Mirage · 01/06/2005 20:58

I'm GBS+too.I knew all along that I wouldn't get to hospital in time for 4 hours of antibiotics,as I have a history of quick labours/births.True to form,I was only in labour for an hour & a half,so the antibiotics didn't have a chance to get to work.Nevertheless,dd2 was fine.We had to stay in for 48hours so she could have an eye kept on her & the midwives took her temp & obs every hour.

When you ring up the hospital before you go in to have the baby,tell them that you are GBS+ & they will have the antibiotics ready for you when you arrive.I didn't move around in labour,as there wasn't time,but I could have done if I'd wanted,the IV drip doesn't mean that you can't move around if you want too.

Please don't worry,the fact that you know about GBS is the important thing-something can be done about it.

Best wishes for a healthy pregnancy & birth for you!

mrsdarcy · 03/06/2005 22:56

I have quick labours too and when I had ds2 didn't get to hospital in time to have antibiotics. His temp went up slightly after delivery so to be on the safe side they gave him antibiotics. Although I'd follow the same advice again, I have since been told that a quick labour, without monitors on the baby's scalp, is the best thing that can happen if you have GBS. The baby spends a relatively short time in the birth canal and doesn't get much exposure to the bacteria, so the risk is therefore even lower.

I'm going to be induced this time round (nothing to do with the GBS) so will have plenty of time to have antibiotics myself. I'd much rather I had to put up with the needle than the baby!

Good luck with the pregnancy and please try not to worry about it. As others have said, the most important thing is that you and the hospital know about it and can take every necessary step to keep the baby safe.

khoggie · 03/06/2005 23:20

Hi,
Congrats and best wishes firstly. Be reasured that you have been tested and that your medics are aware as that is the most important. I would urge ALL preg women to make sure they are tested and aware of the result in good time, as you are Muddywinter. I am good cause for this. I don't want to alarm anyone, god knows, i've been there... I wasn't tested for GBS but after 12 hours of labour the surgeon got concerned at my raised temp. I got to 42 deg C before they decided things were amiss... I got Group B Strep Septicemia and was on antibiotics for 10 days. After an emergency c' section during which i was knocked out for my own good to bring my temp down from near fatal. My boy was healthy but only thanks to an alert surgeon. What I'm saying girls is GBS is not only a danger to the littlies, but medics are (thankfully) aware of the danger to babies but don't always consider the risk to us...
Oh yeh, Hi to all.
X

milward · 03/06/2005 23:21

I had gbs for 3rd baby. Had a antibiotic drip in labour but labour was so quick I didn't get the full dose. GBS didn't effect my labour in anyway. My dd had antibiotics for 3 days afterwards with an access point kept in her hand and her hand bandaged onto a small splint. I was happy when this was over. Was just relieved that I'd been tested and that everything necessary was done to help my dd. Best wishes

Franniban · 05/06/2005 20:47

Hi, I had a friend who read her medical notes after giving birth and it said that she had GBS, she gave brith very quickly and I beleive there was not time for anti bs, however, she has just had her second ds, and during the pregnancy was tested and was possitive, but at the birth, was negative, apparently it's something that you can carry on week and not the next. Her first ds is 18 months old and perfectly healthy.

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