It is the leading cause of serious perinatal infection and death in the U.S. as well as in most developed countries. For this reason, control of this infection is a priority in obstetric care. The actual incidence of the disease, however, has remained unchanged over this period of time indicating that further progress will require improved effort in prevention as well as in the treatment of disease. Epidemiology and Risk Factors Maternal infection with GBS most commonly presents as chorioamnionitis, endomyometritis, cystitis, or pyelonephritis. Invasion of the amniotic fluid is the most likely cause of both premature labor and overt infection of the newborn.
Fever is a frequent sign of infection.
Because the symptoms of GBS disease may not be apparent until the postpartum period, and fever is 5 to 6 times more common in colonized women, fever at any time during the peripartum period should alert the physician to the possibility of GBS disease in the newborn. Invasive GBS disease in neonates is defined primarily by the presence of bacteremia, pneumonia, or meningitis. The overall incidence of invasive disease is approximately 1.8 per 1000 live term births. Each year in the U.S. approximately 7600cases of GBS disease are reported. These exhibit a cumulative mortality of '300 to 350 deaths per year.