Group B Step

[rubyboo2]

Hi all I am currently preggers with my 3rd baby and am 20 wks . I found out early on in my second pregnancy that I had Group B Strep so was treated with abx in pregnancy and during my labour . All went well and I had a healthy 9lb 2oz boy . I have spoken to the consultant about the use of abx during labour again but have been told this wont be the case unless I test positive for this again . So far ive agreed to have swabs at 36 weeks to test and will go from there . I am concerned as i could get a false positive result . I used to be a nurse so I understand policies etc and I wont tae any crap !! Has anyone else been in my position ?

Sorry ruby, I can't really advise but am watching with interest. I had antibiotics for strep a few years ago (when I wasn't pregnant) so will maybe have to ask if I need to be tested nearer my due date.

Why would you get a false positive? If you are concerned about the reliability of an nhs test, you can do it privately, it's only about £35 and privately it's more reliable because the test is a rectal and vaginal swab

I was group B strep +ve in my first labour, so I had to have antibiotics throughout and 48-hour observation for DS1 following, so for my 2nd pregnancy I got the private screen at 36 weeks. It was -ve and all was well, but I was all prepared to be +ve again. I was warned that the screen the NHS uses isn't 100% reliable, so the private test was worth it IMO and gave me peace of mind that the result was the right one.

Hi lighteningmama , The test the NHS uses is reliable . Group B Strep comes and goes so I can get tested at 36 wks and its negative then the next day it can be present/active again . Which is what really worries me I asked if it was for financial reasons they dont give abx as a precaution but they told me it was the effect on the baby , which i am sure are not as bad as the effects of GBS such as Pneumonia , menigitis and other stuff ! Thanks juneau i think its just the nature of GBS that may make NHS screening look pants . It picked it up in my 1st pregnancy at 12 wks I had never even heard of it . I will just see what others experiences ..... Also I will make consultant work for his money

Have you had a look at the gbs society website? There's so much info in there it's really helpful. They say the nhs test isn't as reliable as a private test. Also they say a test done at any point in time is highly predictive of your status for the next 5 weeks. They also say with the nhs tests a false negative is much more likely than a false positive-a positive result is pretty reliable. It's worth taking a look at their site it may reassure you on some of your qns.

Sorry lightningmama but the private and NHS methods are exactly the same! They have to be due to quality assurance against recognised PHE issued standards. In fact they might end up in the same laboratory whether private or NHS.
Yes I have looked at GBBS and I'm also a microbiologist.

I'm only going by the group b strep society info. They say that. It's because a private test is both vaginal AND rectal. The nhs test is usually either urine or vaginal only.

here. If you go to the nhs question, it says clearly there are different tests available, and if you follow the link it shows that only 5nhs trusts are known to the gbss as offering the sensitive test which is available privately (though others may offer it and not be known to the gbss)

Hth