Abstract
BackgroundGroup B Streptococcus (GBS) is the leading cause of septicemia, meningitis, and pneumonia in neonates. Maternal colonization with GBS is the principal risk factor for early-onset disease in infants. Group B Streptococcus is now an important cause of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in many parts of the world. In Ethiopia, few studies have been done on GBS colonization among pregnant women. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of GBS colonization, antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and assess risk factors among pregnant women.MethodsA prospective cross-sectional study was conducted from May to August 2014 at selected public antenatal care (ANC) centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Clinical and socio-demographical data were collected using structured questionnaire after obtaining written informed consent. A total of 281 lower vaginal swabs were collected and inoculated into 1 ml Todd Hewitt Broth supplemented with gentamicin and nalidixic acid to prevent the growth of contaminants. After overnight incubation, all broths were subcultured on 5% sheep blood agar for isolation of GBS. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed according to the criteria of the Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI) guidelines 2013 by disk diffusion method. Data were entered and analysed using SPSS version 20.0 software. Chi-square test and binary logistic regression analysis were used. P-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsThe overall prevalence of GBS colonization among pregnant women was 14.6% (41/281). Group B Streptococcus colonization was significantly associated with health institutions (P < 0.05). All GBS isolates were susceptible to chloramphenicol. Resistance to tetracycline, cefotaxime, clindamycin, penicillin, vancomycin, ampicillin and erythromycin was 90.2%, 34.1, 26.8%, 19.5, 17%, 14.6 and 7.5% respectively. Multidrug resistance (MDR) (≥ 2 drugs) was detected in 43.9% (18/41) of the isolates.ConclusionThere was a high frequency of GBS colonization (14.6%) and resistance to the commonly used antibiotics which suggests the importance of the screening of GBS colonization in pregnant women at 35–37 weeks of gestation and testing their antimicrobial susceptibilities in order to provide antibiotic prophylaxis and minimize newborn infection and co-morbidity.
Highlights
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the leading cause of septicemia, meningitis, and pneumonia in neonates
Group B Streptococcus neonatal infection could be early-onset GBS disease (EOGBSD), which occurs within the first week of life, and late-onset GBS disease (LOGBSD), which occurs between one week to 3 months of age [4, 5]
Approximately 10–30% of women are colonized with GBS in vagina [8, 9] and 60% of their infants acquire this organism through birth canal [6]
Summary
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the leading cause of septicemia, meningitis, and pneumonia in neonates. Maternal colonization with GBS is the principal risk factor for early-onset disease in infants. Group B Streptococcus is an important cause of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in many parts of the world. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of GBS colonization, antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and assess risk factors among pregnant women. Maternal colonization with GBS in the genitourinary or gastrointestinal tract and transmission to the infant during the labor and delivery process is the principal risk factor for early-onset invasive GBS disease [2, 3, 9]. In the absence of a licensed GBS vaccine [3], universal screening of mothers for vaginal or rectal GBS colonization at 35 to 37 weeks of gestation and selective intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) for all screen-positive women is the strategy currently recommended to reduce incidence of colonization in neonates and prevent early-onset GBS-related diseases [3, 9, 10]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
