Group B streptococcus infection
A major cause of infections, including infections involving the pregnant woman and her newborn infant. Strep B can infect the mother’s uterus, placenta, and urinary tract; in fact, they are present in the vagina of 10 to 25 percent of all pregnant women.
Infections in the infant can be localized, or may involve the entire body. In babies, strep infections are divided into early-onset and late-onset disease. Early- onset disease presents within the first six days of life with breathing difficulty, shock, pneumonia, and occasionally infection of the spinal fluid and brain (meningitis). Late-onset disease presents between the seventh day and the third month of age with a bloodstream infection (bacteremia) or meningitis. The bacteria can also infect an area of bone; a joint, like the knee or hip; or the skin.
Group B strep infection in the newborn is a serious and potentially life- threatening event, particularly because fever and warning signs are often minimal or absent, and because the newborn’s immune system is not mature. Early signs of infection can be as subtle as poor feeding, lethargy, or poor temperature control. Women with vaginal group B strep can transmit it to their infant before birth, after the membranes are ruptured, or during the delivery. These babies have a .5 to 1 percent chance of contracting the early-onset type of infection. The risk rises with premature infants; infants born more than 18 hours after the amniotic membranes have ruptured; and infants whose mothers had fever, evidence of infection of the uterus lining, or infection of the urinary tract during labor and delivery. With many infants discharged less than 24 hours after birth today, there is growing pressure to culture all women during pregnancy for group B step.
Antibiotic treatment can be considered for culture-positive women before delivery. A positive culture permits the infant’s doctor to be especially alert to early signs of problems. Group B strep infection of the newborn is treated aggressively with antibiotics, usually in a neonatal intensive care unit, but the disease still carries a significant mortality rate. Prevention and early detection are critically important.
Read Also:
- Group therapy
1) A type of psychiatric care in which several patients meet with one or more therapists at the same time. The patients form a support group for each other as well as receiving expert care and advice. The group therapy model is particularly appropriate for psychiatric illnesses that are support-intensive, such as anxiety disorders, but […]
- Growing pains
Mysterious pains in growing children, usually in the legs, likely occurring as a result of overuse. Growing pains are typically somewhat diffuse, and they are not associated with physical changes of the area, such as swelling or redness. The pains are usually easily relieved by massage, acetaminophen, or rest. If pain persists for over a […]
- Growth hormone
A hormone made in the pituitary gland that stimulates the release of another hormone called somatomedin by the liver, thereby causing growth. Also known as somatotropin. Growth hormone is produced by the anterior pituitary gland, the front section of the gland, and is a polypeptide that consists of 191 amino acids. Growth hormone is given […]
- Gluten
A protein found in wheat or related grains and many foods that we eat. Gluten can be found in a large variety of foods including soups, salad dressings, processed foods and natural flavorings. Unidentified starch, binders and fillers in medications or vitamins can be unsuspected sources of gluten.
- Gluteal
Pertaining to the buttocks region, which is formed by the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus muscles.