Abstract

To the Editor. —We read with great interest the article by Schwartz et al 1 that describes the incidence and clinical spectrum of group B streptococcal infection in adults. Their findings in a metropolitan population in 1982 through 1983 were similar to those we reported earlier 2 over a 10-year period in our hospital: a high case-fatality rate (32% in their study) as well as an increased risk of infection in patients with cancer and diabetes. The 38% case-fatality rate among 29 patients with bacteremia in our study occurred despite appropriate therapy, often with combinations that included β-lactam agents and aminoglycosides. Twenty-eight percent of these patients presented in septic shock, while 80% of the fatalities occurred within 48 hours of the first blood isolate of group B streptococcus organisms. The majority of group B streptococcal infections in adults in our hospital appeared to be of nosocomial origin.

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