Group B streptococcal disease in infants

摘要

Group B streptococcus causes devastating disease in neonates. Early work defining epidemiology, risk factors, and prevention methods included a case series of ten neonates,1 eight of whose mothers had prolonged rupture of membranes (between 14 h and 30 days) before delivery and four of whom had clinical evidence of chorioamnionitis. Subsequent US studies defined two forms of presentation: early fulminant disease in the first 6 days of life (often in the first nours) and late-onset disease more commonly associated with meningitis.2 Vertical transmission of group B streptococcus from the mother's genital tract is a major risk factor for early disease. Colonisation occurs in about 10-20% of pregnant women in both developed and developing countries.