What you need to know:
Group B streptococcus (GBS) infection is a common bacterial infection that is generally not serious in adults but can be life-threatening to newborns. GBS affects about 1 in every 2,000 babies born in the United States. Anyone can carry GBS, and between 10 and 30 percent of pregnant women carry it.

If a pregnant woman carries the GBS bacterium in her vagina or rectum at the time of labor, there is a 1 in 100 (1 percent) chance that her baby will become infected. Babies infected with GBS can get pneumonia, sepsis (blood infection) or meningitis (infection of the membranes surrounding the brain). Infected babies can be treated with antibiotics. Most have no long-lasting damage, but about 5 percent die, and some babies who develop meningitis suffer lasting neurologic damage.


What you can do:
You can be screened for GBS infection during the last few weeks of pregnancy. If you carry GBS, or your provider determines you are at risk for GBS infection, you will be treated with intravenous antibiotics during labor and delivery.

If you have any questions about GBS, ask your health care provider near the end of your pregnancy.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have a special Web site devoted to Group B strep.