What Is A Gbs Test? What Happen When Its Positive

mauxtav8r · Apr 4, 2008

Group B strep --- if mom is + (lady partslly) and baby is born and no antibiotics were given, stuff goes downhill very fast.

Other groups get this, but I'll bet you are in ob?

Trophywife81 · Apr 4, 2008

GBS most likely refers to Group B Streptoccus. Some women naturally carry group B strep in the lady partsl/perianal area. It is not sexually transmitted.

If a woman about to deliver is a GBS carrier, the infection can be passed on to her newborn, whose immune system is not mature enough to fight the organism; thus the newborn will likely perish.

Transmission to the baby is easily prevented with IV antibx given to mom during the labor/delivery period.

Your maternal/neonatal textbook will probably have more specifics that what I can tell you. Hope that helps!

Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP · Apr 4, 2008

Group B strep --- if mom is + (lady partslly) and baby is born and no antibiotics were given, stuff goes downhill very fast.

Stuff CAN go downhill very fast, but not always. If mom didn't get treatment but was ruptured, we draw blood cultures on the baby and s/he has to stay the full 48 hrs after delivery but most don't have any issues. We do watch them closely, though.

If Mom is positive but there's no rupture of membranes before delivery, there's no issue.

CEG · Apr 4, 2008

Group B strep --- if mom is + (lady partslly) and baby is born and no antibiotics were given, stuff goes downhill very fast.
Other groups get this, but I'll bet you are in ob?

If untreated the risk of infection for the baby is about 1/200 and the risk of death for the baby is about 1/1000. So things CAN go downhill fast, but don't necessarily.

Trophywife81 · Apr 4, 2008

If untreated the risk of infection for the baby is about 1/200 and the risk of death for the baby is about 1/1000. So things CAN go downhill fast, but don't necessarily.

Interesting. From what I remember in learning about it in NS, the instructors made it seem as though it were almost written in stone that the baby would not make it. Glad to know that it is not as dire as it was made out to be!

(Labor and Delivery is NOT my specialty, btw!)

CEG · Apr 4, 2008

Interesting. From what I remember in learning about it in NS, the instructors made it seem as though it were almost written in stone that the baby would not make it. Glad to know that it is not as dire as it was made out to be!
(Labor and Delivery is NOT my specialty, btw!)

Yeah, that is kind of the impression they give. The other thing to note is that GBS is transient, meaning I can test positive at 36 weeks and be negative at delivery and receive treatment anyway and test negative at 36 weeks and be positive at delivery and not receive treatment. It's a very imperfect system!

CEG · Apr 4, 2008

It won't let me edit but I wanted to add a source for the numbers I posted earlier:

http://www.cdc.gov/groupBstrep/general/gen_public_faq.htm

Trophywife81 · Apr 4, 2008

I too was just trying to edit, but to no avail!

I meant "streptococcus" not streptoccus. :rolleyes:

mauxtav8r · Apr 5, 2008

Interesting. From what I remember in learning about it in NS, the instructors made it seem as though it were almost written in stone that the baby would not make it. Glad to know that it is not as dire as it was made out to be!
(Labor and Delivery is NOT my specialty, btw!)

ditto, ditto, ditto.

cmonkey · Apr 5, 2008

Interesting. From what I remember in learning about it in NS, the instructors made it seem as though it were almost written in stone that the baby would not make it. Glad to know that it is not as dire as it was made out to be!
(Labor and Delivery is NOT my specialty, btw!)

Nope, I was gbs+ with my son and didn't have abx. He just turned 2!