I've had the GBS in urine (asymptomatic both times) issue for pregnancies #2 and #3. Both times it was caught at the routine culture around 17 weeks (my first labs). I've done tons of research, and I'm going to disagree with what some previous posters have said.
With babe #2, my colony count was around 10,000, took the abx my MW prescribed, and three weeks was retested. I had a very nasty yeast reaction--vaginal and nipples---that I treated with probiotics in those weeks. Get this: my retest numbers were
OVER 100,000! Hello second round of abx, more yeast----Yuck, yuck, yuck!! After this nasty reaction, I found out that yeast creates a perfect environment for GBS to grow---irritation is a great breeding ground. I elected NOT to be retested at all during pregnancy or do more abx, took lots of probiotics, cranberry pills, vitamin C. DD was actually a week over and was fine with two rounds of abx during delivery.
When my GP heard I was treated with such low colony counts at the start, she was livid!! She absolutely thought that the abx made the situation much, much worse.
Fast forward to this pregnancy: GBS was caught again in urine around 12 weeks (over 100,000 count), and after the reading I had done about it, I asked for an immediate referral to a urologist. She concurred with what I had found in research that a urine culture of a pregnant woman is NEVER, and I repeat NEVER, an absolute indicator of a urinary tract infection, especially in the case of GBS. A truly sterile catch of urine, even with copiously wiping with the alcohol wipes, is impossible for a pregnant woman due to heavy vaginal discharge that contaminates ALL urine samples. The
only true way to determine a UTI is to catherize for a urine sample (to make sure it is not contaminated with vaginal discharge).
My urologist offered to catherize for me to know for sure about where the GBS was coming from, but she said that absent of UTI symptoms (and I was), it was most likely that my body was simply just colonized--and those who are just colonized generally produce lots of antibodies to GBS, making it a non-issue for them or their babies. She said the decision was totally up to me---catherize or not. For various reasons, I elected not to be catherized and have been self-treating with probiotics, coconut oil (internal and external---the whole strep family is very susceptible to it), lots of green tea, vitamin C, and extra B vitamins. My MW is going to swab me at 37 weeks to see if I am positive then.
I've stayed UTI symptom-free and had no problems with ptl or pprom. I haven't yet decided if I'll do abx during labor if I test positive again. I'm looking at the hibiclens wash protocols because I know how terribly my body reacts to the abx.
Moral(s) of the story:
1. Get your colony count numbers if your urine is positive.
2. If you've had yeast problems before, it's highly likely that your vagina is GBS colonized and absent UTI symptoms, is probably the source of the bacteria.
3. There are abx alternatives. Ask about cranberry pills, probiotics (the Ultimate Flora brand works great for me---they have a vaginal support formula), coconut oil, and general immune support vitamins like C and D. Strongly brewed green tea (steeped for 30 minutes or more) can flush out lots of various bacteria from the whole UTI tract.
4. Be aware that if you opt for abx, the situation could explode into something 10x worse, and you may have to be on constant abx until delivery---AWFUL for the baby's health, dramatically upping risks for allergies, eczema, and some sources would say, autism spectrum risks.
5. If you're really intent on knowing the source of the GBS, get a urologist to catherize the urine for a true sterile sample.
Whew! I'm done
