Anterior placenta & B-strep

[haidri]

Hi girls I’m almost 22 weeks with my first [hopefully viable!] and was told I’ve got an anterior placenta as well as being a B-strep carrier.

Will my labour be painful because of the placenta?
B-strep ladies, was your child fully protected from infection? 😰

Hi OP, congratulations!
I’m not knowledgeable about the anterior placenta but I do know a bit about the strep b.
As far as I understand it, over 50% of woman carry strep b and it doesn’t cause them any problems whatsoever. Additionally, it is only “active” from time to time so if you tested recently and it was found to be active, it could well be that it is dormant again when your baby is due.
Even if active, apparently less than 1 in every 1750 babies suffer from any problems after being born to a mother with strep b but of course a rare few do become infected.
As you may have guessed, one of my DC had a problem after birth but he is now a strapping nearly 12 year old.
Luckily the signs of an infection (grunting, unusual breathing pattern and cold temperature) were quickly spotted and after 7 day course of antibiotics he was fully recovered and home.
Hopefully all will be well for you - good luck

Hi OP.

The previous poster has explained GBS well, you will be offered IV antibiotics in labour which will be prophylactic to help avoid any infection for your baby. Additionally, your baby will be monitored closely for 12-24 hours post birth for signs of infection.

An anterior placenta will make no difference to labour at all.

@Lostinacloud thank you for the detailed insight. I'm glad it all turned out well for you. It's strange because the I got swab tested after doctors thought I was going into pre-term labour. But a week later, they've now called to tell me that the swab also revealed this!

I can't advise on the b-strep but the anterior placenta should not affect your labour unless it's low lying.

The anterior placenta may mean it takes longer for you to feel movements and also make monitoring movements difficult.

I have an anterior placenta and this is my first. I did not feel movements till closer to 24 weeks and these were not strong until past 28 weeks. I'm 35 weeks pregnant now and have been in the hospital twice for monitoring during my pregnancy due to me being anxious around reduced movement (both times ok thankfully). My experience seems to be very similair/common with other ladies with anxiety with an anterior placenta. If you do suffer with anxiety, I'd advise always speak to the midwives first, don't google or search through forums. This made me so much worse!

All the best with your pregnancy journey

I was swabbed during early labour as they thought there was meconium in my waters. I found out a week after DD was born that I’d tested positive for GBS. Since we don’t know during labour, I didn’t have any antibiotics and DD wasn’t monitored after birth any more than she would otherwise have been. She was totally fine - I’m not saying that therefore you don’t need the antibiotics etc, just wanted to give a reassuring story.

I also had an anterior placenta and I don’t think I heard anything about it maybe causing more pain during labour. I didn’t feel movements until a bit later than average though, which my midwife said was normal.

@haidri ah actually i had forgotten about the antibiotics part. Maybe now you’ve been tested (because it’s not routinely done) they will put you on an antibiotic drip whilst you’re in labour just as a precaution. This happened to me for my subsequent 2 further babies.
Please be reassured that you barely notice the antibiotic drip and it doesn’t inhibit your mobility or labour.