title: Prevention of perinatal group B streptococcal infection: current controversies.
abstract: Group B streptococcus (GBS) is the most frequent cause of neonatal sepsis in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued guidelines for its prevention in 1996. This article details areas of controversy with those guidelines and offers recommendations for resolution. We recommend that a prevention policy be adopted by all hospitals. If a screening-based policy is chosen, compliance is essential. Penicillin is the antibiotic of choice for GBS prevention. Increasing resistance to clindamycin and erythromycin might eliminate them as alternative choices in patients allergic to penicillin. Group B streptococcal prophylaxis might not be necessary in women who have repeat elective cesarean delivery. In asymptomatic women, a positive urine culture for GBS should be considered clinically equivalent to a positive vaginal or rectal sample for screening. Neonatal sepsis caused by organisms other than GBS must be monitored carefully by all hospitals providing obstetrics services.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Kentucky School of Medicine, Lexington 40536, USA. wdhager@aol.com
authors.forename: W D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Hager
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schuchat
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gibbs
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sweet
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mead
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Larsen
mesh_terms: D019072:Antibiotic Prophylaxis; D001437:Bacteriuria / Q000175:diagnosis; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D005260:Female; D005322:Premature Rupture of Fetal Membranes / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008403:Mass Screening; D010406:Penicillins / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000175:diagnosis; D018805:Sepsis / Q000382:microbiology*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013292:Streptococcus agalactiae
chemical_list: D010406:Penicillins