Mums call for Strep B screening to save babies

Mothers of babies who died or suffered brain damage from a Group B Strep (GBS) infection say routine screening is needed.

Oliver Plumb, from the charity Group B Strep Support, said it was a "small number of babies" exposed to the bacteria that developed a serious and potentially fatal infection.

He said around 800 babies a year developed the infection - which is about two babies a day - and about one a week will die, while another a week will be left with a lifelong disability.

"It's a heart-breaking start to life for families and that often the first they hear of Group B Strep is when their baby is sick or in intensive care".

The charity has called for GBS to be a notifiable disease to make it a legal responsibility for infections to be reported. It added that current figures could be "missing around one fifth of the infections".

There was a "postcode lottery" in terms of how many families will hear about GBS, he said. The charity also backed calls for screening.

"In the UK we don't sadly have a routine testing programme, that's at odds with much of the rest of the high-income world. "

A DHSC spokesperson said a public consultation on the notifiable diseases list was carried out last year.

"DHSC and UKHSA are considering the responses and confirmation of any changes will be published in due course," they said.

Several reasons for not recommending routine screening have been given by the committee, including that results can change in the last few weeks of labour, and that GBS does not cause infection in every baby.

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Source: BBC News, 26 February 2024

Further reading on the hub:

• Leading for safety: A conversation with Jane Plumb, Founder of Group B Strep Support