GBS (sorry for starting new thread)

[samsmamma]

Anyone doing the test? My MW actually would like me to do this one since Sam was so early, even though my labor with him was quite fast. She has a bunch of alternatives to antibiotics if I test positive.

DH wants to do the test.

Just curious to know what others are doing?

[crsta33]

I was just thinking about this. I've pulled out my info the midwife gave me and was about to type it in to email it to my mom so I can talk to her about it. I've tried talking to dh, but he thinks we've decided and wouldn't be open to discussing it again. In his mind, we've discussed it, made a decision (though I don't know what he thinks that decision is) and that it's over. He won't weight the risks/benefits with me or read the info for himself.

I'm just not sure whether to be tested or not, or whether to do antibiotics or not if I happen to be positive. You know, I wouldn't mind being tested if I *knew* it would come out negative.

Okay, I typed out the info packet my midwife gave me to send to my mom and here are the things that grabbed my attention...

15 out of 10,000 babies get sick from Early Onset GBS (with no preventative treatment)

Among colonized women with no treatment, between one and five in 1000 will have a baby with problems if there are no risk factors, and about forty in 1000 if there are risk factors present. Risk factors include having a previous baby with GBS disease; having a GBS urinary tract infection during the pregnancy; labor before 37 weeks; fever of more than 100.4 degrees during labor; and rupture of membranes for more than 18 hours before the birth.

With preventive treatment during labor, almost 90% of babies born to colonized moms can be protected.

Screening all pregnant women instead of going by risk factors would mean that about one less baby in every 10,000 births would come down with GBS disease. This included both preterm and term newborns.

Anything in italics I added, the rest was from my midwife's "handout." I'm thinking, in light of how I interpret this info, that I will decline the test and go on "risk factors" instead, though I am going to go ahead and send the info to my mom and see what she thinks.

Christa

[3for3hb]

I'm thinking I might just go ahead and get the test done. If I have it I'm not doing the antibiotic route of course. There are too many natural alternatives that are much less invasive in my opinion. The only reason I really think I might do it is that three of my friends/relatives babies born this past year have gotten infections because of GBS. That's reallly neither here nor there but still I figure maybe it's a sign. Prevention is worth a pound of cure, right?

[*Amy*]

I think I will get tested, but wait til around 37 weeks. I'm also planning on doing a probiotics course about a week prior to the test to help reduce chances of a positive. If it is positive, I still think I will decline antibiotics and go for natural treatment.

[PicnicBear]

I'm with willemsmama about knowing people, not babies with GBS, but older teens (friends at the time) who had menegitis, one who died and one was in a coma for months. To me, this is enough for me to have the test and get the antibiotics as well. I don't mind needles so I would have the IV. Of course I would prefer not to have it, as well as not have to get to to the hospital/birth center way early, but my choice will be to do it.

Sorry if this sounds "scare tactic-y" -- I don't appreciate hearing horror stories about birth, especially out of context and I'm not trying to influence anyone, this is just an honest answer as to the reason behind my personal decision.

[spughy]

I'm going to get tested, but I'm not sure what I'll do if I'm positive. The problem is that I am allergic to sooooo many antibiotics, and I've never had an antibiotic intravenously. My midwife says that what they'll do is make me go to the hospital early in labour for an antibiotic injection, monitor me there for a couple hours, and if I break out in hives (as I do with most antibiotics) they'd try another one, and if that makes it worse, they'd give up and monitor the baby closely once she's born. Hives are not life-threatening of course but they are uncomfortable, and while I'm pretty sure that my antibiotic allergies are not genetically based (no-one else in my family has them and I took antibiotics as a child without incident; the allergies developed while I was on the pill in my late teens/early twenties) if I have some sort of antibodies to them that cause the reaction, wouldn't my baby have them too?

BUT... I know someone who didn't get treated and whose baby DID have problems. And maybe it's worth the discomfort to suck it up and have the damn injections. I just worry that the combination of rampant hormones and antibiotics is going to cause my system to go all wacky and risk me out of a home birth.

Any ideas?

[*Amy*]

Spughy, would you consider a homeopathic/probiotic treatment? I'm investigating it right now and could post some information if you are interested.

I would be worried about a reaction, too, if I were you (for both you and the baby).

[spughy]

I'm not sold on homeopathy, but probiotics I would certainly like to look into. I am just wondering what function GBS bacteria play though. What do they do? Why do they like to hang out down there? Why do they cause no problems? What is the history of GBS?

From my understanding - and please correct me if I'm wrong, Amy - probiotics encourage "good" bacteria which in turn out-compete the bad bacteria. But if GBS is so deeply entrenched and non-harmful to an adult, would the probiotics actually have an effect? Have any studies been done on this, do you know?

[*Amy*]

Gooooood questions! I'm just in the middle stage of research myself, so I don't have all the answers. Tomorrow I will post links to the information I have, OK? My raw-nutritional-counselor friend is looking into it for me as well.

[SoggyGranolaMomma]

I did it and thankfully it was NEGATIVE!! I was + with 3 out of 5 pregnancies. I elect doing it.

[kel]

I will probably get the test done and if it were positive I would probably do the IV - unless there is something natural that definitely works.

[*Amy*]

Here is the article from Mothering discussing the pros and cons of antiobiotic treatment.


Here are some links on probiotic and homeopathic treatments:

http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/gbsAlt.html

http://forums.obgyn.net/pregnancy-bi...0209/0296.html

http://www.moondragon.org/mdbsguidelines/strepb.html

Also I know there is a discussion going on over in the December DDC, so you may want to take a look at what they are saying.