The IBMS supported Group B Strep Awareness Month, highlighting the vital role biomedical scientists play in identifying the bacterium that can cause a potentially deadly infection in newborns.
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a normal bacterium which is carried by 20% t0 40% of adults, most commonly in the gut, and for up to 25% of women in the vagina, usually without symptoms or side-effects.
But occasionally it causes infection, most commonly in newborn babies, sometimes in adults and, very rarely, during pregnancy and before labour.
For more information, visit gbss.org.uk
Image Credit | iStock
