'I wasn't told anything about life-threatening illness until my newborn nearly died from it'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukA mother has spoken of the terrifying moment she thought her new-born son might die from a life-threatening illness, caused by a bacteria passed over during childbirth which she had no previous symptoms of.
Baby Joshua was just two-hours-old when he started suffering sepsis caused by group B Strep bacteria. Group B Strep (GBS) is a bacterium carried by 20-25 per cent of adults in the UK, typically in the gut or vagina.
Carrying GBS is not an infection or illness. It rarely causes any symptoms to the carrier and carriage does not need to be treated - carriage is normal, according to Group B Strep Support, a UK charity working to stop GBS infection in babies.
But GBS can cause infection in new-born babies when the bacteria are transmitted to the baby, typically around labour or after birth.
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