Serotype distribution and mother-to-baby transmission rate of Streptococcus agalactiae among expectant mothers in Kuwait.
BACKGROUND
Streptococcus agalactiae, also known as Group B Streptococcus (GBS), is a formidable pathogen that is commonly responsible for early-onset and late-onset infections with high morbidity and mortality in the neonatal period. Since this organism is usually acquired via the mother's birth canal during labor, this study investigated the maternal carriage rate, mother-to-baby transmission rate, and the common GBS serotypes found among expectant mothers and their babies in Kuwait.


METHODS
The setting was the Maternity Hospital, Kuwait. Low vaginal-anorectal swabs (LVRS) and urine specimens were collected from 847 pregnant women during labor. Ear and umbilical swabs from their new-born babies were also collected. Each specimen was cultured on selective Todd-Hewitt media. Isolates were identified and serotyped by established methods.


RESULTS
Of the 847 mothers, 124 (14.6%) were colonized and 74 (8.7%) babies were colonized, mainly at the umbilicus. The 124 GBS-positive mothers gave birth to 44 babies that were colonized by GBS at one or both sites, which corresponds to a mother-to-baby transmission rate of (35.5%). A total of 193 isolates were serotyped. The majority of the GBS isolates belonged to serotypes III (47; 24.3%), V (42; 21.8%), Ia (25; 12.9%), II and VI (15; 7.8%) each, and VII (11; 5.7%). Only 4 (2.1%) and 1 (0.5%) isolates belonged to serotypes Ib and IV respectively. No isolate belonged to serotype VIII and 33 (17.1%) were non-typable (NT).
Al-Sweih
Noura
N
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, 24923, Al-Safat, 13110, Kuwait.
Hammoud
Majeda
M
Al-Shimmiri
Majed
M
Jamal
Mervet
M
Neil
Lalitha
L
Rotimi
Vincent
V
D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D007730:Kuwait / Q000453:epidemiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D012703:Serotyping; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission* / Q000652:urine; D013292:Streptococcus agalactiae / Q000254:growth & development*; D014470:Umbilical Cord / Q000382:microbiology