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Background: In infants, the mode of acquisition of CC17 group B Streptococcus (GBS), the hypervirulent clone responsible for late-onset disease (LOD), remains elusive., Methods: In a prospective multicenter study in France, we evaluated GBS colonization in mother-baby pairs with 2 months of follow-up between 2012 and 2015. Criteria included positivity for GBS colonization at antenatal screening or at delivery. Maternal vaginal samples and infant oral cavity and stool samples were analyzed at delivery, 21 ± 7 days (D21), and 60 ± 7 days (D60) post-delivery., Results: A total of 890 mother-baby pairs were analyzed. GBS colonized 7%, 21%, and 23% of the infants at birth, D21, and D60, respectively, of which 10%, 11%, and 13% were identified as CC17 GBS. Concordance between maternal and infant GBS type was 96%. At D21, the main risk factors for infant colonization by GBS were simultaneous maternal colonization of the vagina (odds ratio [OR], 4.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.69-15.61) and breast milk (OR, 7.93; 95% CI, 3.81-17.14). Importantly, 38% (95% CI, 23%-56%) of infants colonized by CC17 GBS appeared colonized for the first time at D60 vs 18% (95% CI, 14%-24%; P < .049) of infants colonized by non-CC17 GBS. Multivariate analysis showed a higher risk for de novo infant colonization by CC17 at D60 than by other GBS (OR, 2.45; 95% CI, 1.02-5.88)., Conclusions: The high incidence of CC17 GBS in LOD is likely due to an enhanced post-delivery mother-to-infant transmission., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Objective: To assess outcomes and costs associated with around-the-clock point-of-care intrapartum group B streptococcus (GBS) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening., Methods: Intrapartum PCR screening was implemented in 2010. Intrapartum PCR was compared with antenatal culture screening in an uncontrolled, single institution, preintervention and postintervention study. The study periods included 4 years before and 6 years after the intervention, commencing in 2006 and concluding in 2015. The primary outcome measure was rate of early-onset neonatal GBS disease. Secondary outcomes included length of stay, days of antibiotics, and costs., Results: During the 4 years of antenatal culture screening, 11,226 deliveries were recorded compared with 18,835 in the 6 years of intrapartum GBS PCR screening, corresponding to 11,818 and 18,980 live births, respectively. During the antenatal culture period, 3.8% of term deliveries did not undergo GBS testing compared with 0.1% during the intrapartum PCR period (P<.001). Between the two periods, the rate of proven early-onset GBS disease cases decreased from 1.01/1,000 to 0.21/1,000 (P=.026) and probable early-onset GBS disease cases from 2.8/1,000 to 0.73/1,000 (P<.001); the risk ratio for both was 0.25, 95% CI (0.14-0.43). Total days of hospital and antibiotic therapy for early-onset GBS disease declined by 64% and 60%, respectively, with no significant difference for average length of stay or antibiotic duration preintervention and postintervention. The yearly cost of delivery and treatment of newborns with GBS infection was reduced from $41,875±6,823 to $11,945±10,303 (P<.001). The estimated extra cost to avoid one early-onset GBS disease was $5,819., Conclusion: Point-of-care intrapartum GBS PCR screening was associated with a significant decrease in the rate of early-onset GBS disease and antibiotic use in newborns. The additional PCR costs were offset in part by the reduction in early-onset GBS disease treatment costs.

Group B streptococcus (GBS) remains worldwide a leading cause of severe neonatal disease. Since the end of the 1990s, various strategies for prevention of the early onset neonatal disease have been implemented and have evolved. When a universal antenatal GBS screening-based strategy is used to identify women who are given an intrapartum antimicrobial prophylaxis, a substantial reduction of incidence up to 80% has been reported in the USA as in other countries including European countries. However recommendations are still a matter of debate due to challenges and controversies on how best to identify candidates for prophylaxis and to drawbacks of intrapartum administration of antibiotics. In Europe, some countries recommend either antenatal GBS screening or risk-based strategies, or any combination, and others do not have national or any other kind of guidelines for prevention of GBS perinatal disease. Furthermore, accurate population-based data of incidence of GBS neonatal disease are not available in some countries and hamper good effectiveness evaluation of prevention strategies. To facilitate a consensus towards European guidelines for the management of pregnant women in labor and during pregnancy for the prevention of GBS perinatal disease, a conference was organized in 2013 with a group of experts in neonatology, gynecology-obstetrics and clinical microbiology coming from European representative countries. The group reviewed available data, identified areas where results were suboptimal, where revised procedures and new technologies could improve current practices for prevention of perinatal GBS disease. The key decision issued after the conference is to recommend intrapartum antimicrobial prophylaxis based on a universal intrapartum GBS screening strategy using a rapid real time testing.

Objective: To estimate the cost and consequences of intrapartum polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening on early-onset group B streptococcal (GBS) disease compared with the antenatal lower vagina culture screening recommended in France., Methods: This was a single-institution study comparing the intrapartum PCR screening strategy implemented in 2010 with antenatal culture strategy in place in 2009. Early-onset GBS disease in newborns was monitored exhaustively. We estimated direct costs, including screening test costs and hospital costs, for deliveries of healthy newborns compared with those infected with GBS. Costs in 2009 and 2010 were compared on an intention-to-treat basis., Results: Term deliveries were 2,761 and 2,814 in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Among the screened mothers, the vaginal GBS colonization rate was 11.7% based on antenatal GBS culture screening in 2009 compared with 16.7% in 2010 using the intrapartum PCR testing. The overall probabilities of neonatal GBS disease were 0.9% compared with 0.5%, and the average total cost per delivery was $1,759±1,209 in 2009 compared with $1,754±842 in 2010 (P=.9) in antenatal and intrapartum screening strategies, respectively. The number and severity of cases of early-onset GBS disease and the resulting hospital costs were higher in 2009., Conclusion: Polymerase chain reaction intrapartum screening strategy was cost-neutral when compared with the 2009 antenatal lower vagina culture screening, with a significant decrease in early-onset GBS disease.

Background: Intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis is currently given to mothers who test positive for group B streptococcus (GBS) by antenatal culture-based screening, with a risk-based approach for cases with an unknown GBS status. A rapid real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay for the detection of GBS became available recently, making intrapartum screening possible. We aimed to assess its diagnostic accuracy and to compare it with antenatal screening., Methods: We conducted a prospective study in a French hospital. All pregnant women giving birth at the maternity ward were considered for inclusion, except those with planned cesarean delivery, with delivery at <35 weeks gestation, and who received antibiotic therapy before admission. We performed GBS culture (the reference standard) and a molecular GBS test (Xpert GBS; Cepheid) on intrapartum specimens. Decisions about intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis were based on the current GBS screening by culture at 35-37 weeks gestation., Results: We prospectively enrolled 968 pregnant women from April 2007 through March 2008. The overall molecular GBS test yield was 89.2%. Among the 863 women with available results, the molecular GBS test had a sensitivity of 98.5%, specificity of 99.6%, positive predictive value of 97.8%, and negative predictive value of 99.7%. The positive predictive value of antenatal culture for identifying colonization status at delivery was low (58.3%), whereas the negative predictive value was imperfect (92.1%)., Conclusions: This real-time PCR assay is a highly accurate test to identify intrapartum GBS carriers at point of care. This new tool could enhance the exact identification of candidates for intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis, including women with preterm rupture of membranes or preterm labor.