Prenatal strep screening works -- but not as well as hoped
June 17, 2009
By Thomas H. Maugh II
Los Angeles Times

Streptococcus B infections transmitted by the mother are one of the most common causes of infections in newborns, occurring in about 1 in every 3,000 births. In order to reduce the rate of infections, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2002 recommended that all pregnant women be screened for the bacterium and treated with antibiotics if it is found to be present. The first analysis of results from this screening program has shown that the screening works, reducing the number of new infections by 27% over a five-year period. Unfortunately, the analysis also showed that nearly two-thirds of the children who contracted strep B had mothers who tested negative for the germ. ...