A third of people will have Group B streptococcus (GBS) in their intestine, and a quarter of women have it in their vagina at any given time. Colonisation is intermittent, and for most, has no consequences. In contrast, infection with GBS carries significant morbidity and mortality. While infection can occur in any age group, infants aged up to three months are most susceptible and, indeed, GBS is the most common cause of life-threatening infection in newborn babies.
Compared with countries who screen for GBS in pregnant women, the UK incidence of so-called early onset GBS (EO GBS) infection has been shown to be increasing and varies from less than one, to 3.6 per 1,000 live births. Of the 230,000 babies born to GBS-positive mothers in the UK, without preventative medicine around 88,000 will be colonised, 700 will suffer severe infection and up to 100 will die. GBS can also cause stillbirth and premature labour.
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