if you avoid or ignore GBS test

[aravinda]

Hi - I see that a number of you avoid the GBS test or refuse the antibiotics even ifyou test positive. I agree with the logic - that the result is not that reliable - but are there other indications you look for to figure out whether you need the antibiotic or do you just refuse it and use alternative preventative measures like tea tree oil and hope for the best? Also I would appreciate knowing what else you use.

Some have mentioned probiotics - how do these help in case of GBS+? I thought probiotics were things you took after completing a course of antibiotics.

[Arwyn]

Probiotics help balance the flora of your intestines and general body (including genitals). If your flora is balanced, GBS won't have the chance to flourish.

I didn't do any GBS specific anything. I had no indications of a vaginal infection or general infection (in part because I just took good care of myself, including taking probiotics), no fever, my baby wasn't premature, so the odds of there being a GBS problem even if I were colonized were very, very low. The vast majority of GBS cases are in premature infants or when the mother is sympomatic.

[Ironica]

Hmmm....

Well, part of the issue is, even if mom is GBS+, baby is not that likely to pick up the disease and get sick from it (the rate is about 6% according to an article in the mothering.com archives). Then there's an even smaller percentage of those babies who actually suffer permanent harm or death from the disease. Some babies are more at risk than others; although I won't consider doing antibiotics again for a normal, full-term delivery, if I were delivering prematurely I would almost certainly do them.

Then there's the fact that there ARE other protocols besides systemic antibiotics that can remove or lessen the threat, such as hibiclens rinses, garlic, or probiotics.

As to what probiotics are and how they help... the bacterial strains in probiotics are the same as or substantially similar to those found natively in the digestive systems of healthy humans. When the "good bugs" get out of balance, several things can happen. One of those things is that, with the ecological niche vacated by those "good bugs," "bad bugs" can become overrepresented. EVERYONE has a leeetle bit of GBS in their bodies... along with streptococcus, e. coli, and other scary sounding things. ;-) When we get an infection from these bugs, it's because they overgrow and/or get into parts of our bodies where they don't belong and aren't kept in check.

The GBS culture practically always finds GBS; but only 30-40% of women have it at a level that is considered "dangerous." Those women may lack sufficient numbers of certain "good bugs" that help keep GBS in check. So taking probiotics or using probiotic vaginal suppositories containing those particular strains can bring down the GBS count to a "safe" level.

If you deliver in a US hospital and decline the GBS test, the standard of care is to keep you and baby for observation for at least 48 hours after birth. If either of you develop a fever, they'll want you to take antibiotics for GBS infection.

[XanaduMama]

I was + last time and got the abx. This time (home birth) I'll test (mostly bc I'm afraid of having to transfer and being treated as if I and baby were +, but also bc I'd like to know and respond accordingly), but will not get the abx even if I'm +, unless I show symptoms. I'm going to do the hibiclens (chlorhexedine) wash before I test and probably again once labor starts, and might also give the TTO/garlic thing a try. Hibiclens has been shown as effective as abx at treating GBS, but doesn't kill the good bacteria that baby needs (and you!). Also loading on vit c and probiotics to strengthen immune system.