Could you have Group B Strep and not even know it? What exactly is Group B Strep, and why does it matter to your unborn baby? Can it really be all that dangerous if an estimated 1 in 4 pregnant women have it?
Yes.
Birth injury attorney Laura Brown discusses the need to screen mothers prior to labor and delivery, and what effects Group B Strep could have on a baby.
Group B Strep that’s sort of the shortcut name for it, but it stands for Group Beta Streptococcus. Beta Streptococcus is a particular type of bacteria. A newborn who is exposed to or infected with Group B Strep can be seriously sick and injured. The brain can suffer an injury as a result of this type of infection. Group B Strep is a fairly common bacteria in the general population and during pregnancy mothers are screened or supposed to be screened, somewhere between 35-37 weeks gestation to see if they are colonized with Group B Strep.
It’s not an uncommon thing, but it’s not a bad thing. But if they are colonized with Group B Strep, then the baby may need to be protected during labor and delivery, by giving the mother antibiotics. And the antibiotic administration will protect the baby during labor and delivery to prevent an infection caused by Group B Strep. Sometimes the babies are exposed and not protected with antibiotics and end up with a severe injury caused by this infection.
So if you have a child that during the newborn period that is diagnosed with a Group B Strep infection or meningitis, caused by Group B Strep and want to know whether or not that infection could have been prevented, feel free to contact me and I’ll be happy to talk with you about what happened, look at your records, and see if this is an injury that could have been prevented.
