Positive for Group B Strep

baby0708 · June 2015

Hello Ladies,

So my doctor called me this morning to let me know that my urine test I took Monday came back positive for GBS. They are starting me on antibiotics right away for it and will test me in my 3rd trimester for it again. Just kind of freaking out because of things I have read online. Has anyone ever had this before? This just makes my pregnancy that more complicated since I am at "high risk" because I have had 2 M/C in the last year....just needed to vent some of my paranoid thoughts.

kayjay44 · June 2015

I was positive last time. And I'm allergic to penicillin. Long story short, they weren't able to get all of the antibiotics into me before I delivered (since they had to give two doses vs penicillin's one). Both of us are happy and healthy over a year later.

baby0708 · June 2015

Thank you for calming some of my fears!

Jilly82 · June 2015

I had it as well. Totally not a big deal, so try not to stress. I just had an IV of antibiotics during delivery. That's it : )

Life is Exciting · June 2015

I'm surprised they did your test this early. My OB office tested me for group b strep at my 36 week visit last time. Turned out they needed to give me antibiotics in my IV during labor bdc

baby0708 · June 2015

They did a routine urine test as well as blood work Monday and it just happened to show up. Not really looking forward to taking anitbiotics though since they always mess with my system....thank you to all of you for calming my fears though!

erincjackson · June 2015

I had it with my first pregnancy. I was similar to a @Jilly82. Ran IV antibiotics during delivery but didn't get it all the way in and we just stayed an extra day for monitoring. He will be 10 this year and all is great!

NoelBird · June 2015

I was last time. I didn't get the antibiotics in time with my first either. The admitting nurse didn't believe I was I labor and waited too long to check and admit me. By the time I started the IV it was too late. We had to stay an extra day but the baby was fine.

g8trkim · June 2015

I didn't have it but I've had a couple friends who did. No biggie and babies were perfect!

DaisyTortilla · June 2015

I had it also. I was given antibiotics during delivery and we were all good.

kjhague · June 2015

I had it in my urine in the first trimester with my first pregnancy. Then when they swab me at 36 weeks it was negative, so just because it's in your urine now doesn't mean you'll necessarily still have it later on. Good luck and try not to stress about it too much!

baby0708 · June 2015

Thank you for all of the information!

lavancha · June 2015

I don't want to stress you out, but I lost my last baby last December at 25 weeks due to prenatal onset group b strep disease. My doctors knew that I was gbs positive with high levels early on (when it tests positive in the urine you have higher levels of colonization) but it is not standard care to treat it throughout pregnancy because it usually doesn't cross the membranes into the womb. In my case it did, causing preterm labor, and she only lived 2 days due to the infection, among other things. I wish my doctor had treated me with antibiotics early on. I just found out I'm pregnant again, and this time will be taking antibiotics throughout pregnancy if gbs +. I don't want to scare you, just want to reassure you that it can be good to take the antibiotics even at this early stage, and it's good to be aware of your gbs status from the beginning so that you can avoid any invasive procedures. Good luck and I'm sure it will be fine! My case is definitely the exception.

kayjay44 · June 2015

I am so sorry, @lavancha.

baby0708 · June 2015

Thank you for this information. So sorry for your loss. My doctor plans on testing me again next week after I have finished the antibiotics. I will definitely let my doctor know that it is a concern and I would like to be monitored throughout my pregnancy; especially since it is so early thus far.

Kimbarbour08 · January 2016

Just bringing this thread back to life now that we're in the time frame when our providers are checking for GBS. Mine came back positive (just found out today) so I'll need IV antibiotics when I go in to labor. From what my midwife said, it isn't a very complicated thing as long as they get the antibiotics in time. She said they'll want me to call right away if my water breaks or if I have a fever since they want to start them sooner if that happens. Anyone else?

BBEA2006 · January 2016

I'm positive this time too and my ob and midwife pretty much just said if u get the antibiotics, they've never seen it affect the baby. And still very small chance if I didn't get it in time. Plus I can have my water birth still so hopefully nothing more than iv meds. I never had it with my other 2 so this one is new to me too.

heatherlemieux · January 2016

I was positive with my son 6+ years ago and I will find out next week about this pregnancy. With my son there were no adverse effects and he was perfectly healthy. Don't be stressed! The ABT should be able to prophylacticly treat baby effectively. Try to relax! I know I've been very curious about this time around but there is no need in stressing all the potential ill outcomes. It will be okay. Best of luck!

cognity · January 2016

I just found out I'm positive for this- they also found it in my urine. I have gestational diabetes, this group b strep, and my blood pressure has been flirting too high with high edema in both me and AFL. My doctor is leaving it up to me, but brought up the dreaded "induction" topic at our last appointment. Everything is kind of scaring me and I'm becoming more and more afraid to do any labor ing at home with everything going on.

Stay strong mamas

pbtoast · January 2016

I tested positive and I'm also allergic to penicillin so I'll be on some kind of IV abx but not sure which yet. I wasn't worried at all until I googled it and read some scary stories, so don't. My doctor talked me down today and now I'm back to thinking it's no big deal as long as I get the antibiotics.

mmeadows16 · January 2016

Found out at last weeks appt. that I am gbs+. My OB didn't seem very worried at all. My baby girl is breech at 37 weeks so he just told me that if she does turn over that I'll have to have IV antibiotics before delivery. So I'm not stressing about it.

purplepenguin3 · January 2016

I found out last week that i'm positive as well. I haven't had it with either of my previous pregnancies. My doctor told me not to be worried. so i'm just hoping that labor doesn't go to quickly this time around.

Latina211508 · January 2016

I just got my results today and they were negative. Was negative with my other 3 children as well. But when I asked my Ob what would occur if I was positive she said I would have to get antibiotics before delivering the baby so it doesn't pass to the baby. But she said there's nothing to worry and it's pretty simple.

satuttle1014 · January 2016

I will get my results back on Friday when I go in for a 36 week growth check. The only thing my doctor said if I did test positive that they would give me an IV full of antibiotics. It seems to be pretty common and just something they check for but doesn't sound like anything to be nervous or stressed over.

Kimbarbour08 · January 2016

One question for those of you who have had this before (or maybe just are more informed about the topic than I am), how long does it take to administer the antibiotics. Like do they just do a shot, or are you hooked up to an IV and if so can you move around/how long are you hooked up?

baby0708 · January 2016

I ended up getting IV antibiotics a couple of weeks ago for Group B Strep since I had my baby boy 4 weeks early (January 4th). I tested positive for it way back early in pregnancy. They start giving you the antibiotics via IV right away when you are in labor. I received the first dose after they put the IV in (which I feel was the worst part since I hate needles!) and then I got two additional doses via IV later that evening and the next day. They gave me Clindamycin- 900MG/6ML. Usually they administer Amoxicillin but I am allergic to Duriceff which is in the same family. The IV was hooked up to a machine on wheels so I was still able to get up and walk around, use the restroom and also use the jet tub when my contractions started getting more intense which I highly recommend to everyone! I was also on another antibiotic but that was due to other complications I was having. For all of you moms who do test positive for Group B Strep; do not stress! It was one of the easier things to have to endure and as long as they start them while in labor or before a c-section you will be just fine!

thisusername · January 2016

Mine won't tell me until I go into labor if I am positive or not. A little annoying. So reading through this thread and being prepared just in case has been helpful. Hope everyone has an easy and safe delivery!

BBEA2006 · January 2016

My ob said I can still move around and have my water birth. I just nerds to get a an IV in and have the antibiotics given every 4 hours. I believe he mentioned penicillin.

jennarhoda · January 2016

@Kimbarbour08 I had it with my last pregnancy and the full dose took 4 hours for the Iv to run. My water broke at home so they admitted me right away and didn't check my dilation until the antibiotics were done. It was very annoying because it made me have to pee a lot so they would have to unhook me so I could go to the bathroom and of course I was in pain but once they were done my labor moved fast. My son and I were both healthy and no complications.

MamaFroFro · January 2016

I'm taking probiotics now hoping that I will test negative before labor (tested positive at 37 weeks). Probably won't help but I suppose it couldn't hurt to prep for the antibiotics which always give me yeast infections. Anyone nervous about the antibiotics should relax though, it's better than baby ending up in nicu.

Life is Exciting · January 2016

Life is Exciting said:

I'm surprised they did your test this early. My OB office tested me for group b strep at my 36 week visit last time. Turned out they needed to give me antibiotics in my IV during labor bdc

Just found out I'm positive for GBS this time around, so they'll give me antibiotics when I'm in labor. Not looking forward to laboring with an IV in my arm again, but they will give me a wheelie cart so I can walk around with it.

purplepenguin3 · January 2016

@thisusername I think i would be mad if they wouldn't tell me. Why wouldn't they tell you? That seems like some good information to know.

@jennarhoda does it really take 4 hours? i thought it took like an hour to get it administered. That makes me nervous if it's 4 hours b/c my whole last labor was 4 hours long. $:\$ I definitely want to get all the meds in before baby is born, but what if you don't have any control?

cognity · January 2016

@MamaFroFro
Probiotics can help with that? I've always gotten yeast infections from the cillin family of drugs and I was going to bring this up. Thanks for the tip! I'm going to ask my Ob tomorrow!

baby0708 · January 2016

MamaFroFro said:

I'm taking probiotics now hoping that I will test negative before labor (tested positive at 37 weeks). Probably won't help but I suppose it couldn't hurt to prep for the antibiotics which always give me yeast infections. Anyone nervous about the antibiotics should relax though, it's better than baby ending up in nicu.

I would also recommend asking your doctor for Diflucan (a pill you take when you have or to prevent yeast infections) since antibiotics tend to cause yeast infections which is the last thing you will want to deal with afterwards! I had my doctor give me 2 doses just to make sure I wouldn't get one which luckily I didn't!

jennarhoda · January 2016

@purplepenguin3 that's why they didn't check me at all while I was getting my IV and I wasn't allowed pictocin my labor moved fast too And they were worried I wouldn't get all my antibiotics in. If your water breaks just get there ASAP. The good news is they were still confident "some" is better than "none" when it comes to antibiotics and as much as they get in is still good. My little one and I were just fine and didn't have any problems after. Good luck!!!!

aShShE · January 2016

I was gbs+ and had to be induced due to high blood pressure, I received 3 rounds of antibiotics, but my OB said as long as you get atleast an hour of antibiotics, then your baby should be just fine!

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Positive for Group B Strep

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DD1: 9/19/11
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DS: 1/1/14
DD2: 1/31/16