‘I just thought, I can’t go home without him’: Mum calls for routine Strep B screening after nearly losing baby boy
Check out Rebecca Haworth's full report
Bethany Rashley from Kettering is calling for all pregnant women to be tested for Group B Strep after nearly losing her own child.
Baby Arthur developed Meningitis and Sepsis because of the bacterial infection formally called Group B Streptococcus (GBS) being passed from mum Bethany during birth.
Currently there is no routine screening for pregnant women and the test is only available privately. Bethany says she wishes she had been warned about GBS, and thinks all pregnant women should be tested for it.
A study carried out by University College London Hospitals recorded 53 GBS deaths between April 2014 and April 2015 in babies less than 90 days old. That's roughly one death a week.
Bethany Rashley had a straightforward pregnancy until 33 weeks when she experienced possible labour pains and noticed the baby was moving less than normal. She went to Kettering General hospital and was sent home after a few days. At 39 weeks, Bethany went with her parter Andy Halcrow to be induced when there was no improvement in the baby’s movement.
It was on the postnatal ward that Bethany started to realise that something wasn't right.
Bethany said she mentioned to a midwife that Arthur was making a ‘funny grunting noise’, but he settled in the afternoon.
The new mother got up to change and feed her baby.
Arthur's fingers and toes turned purple and the skin on his chest was mottled.
The hospital did several tests and found GBS bacteria in Arthur’s spinal fluid, indicating the infection. It was also confirmed that he now had meningitis and sepsis.
The next day Arthur became ‘floppy and unresponsive’ and was moved into an incubator.
Some babies are left with long-term effects after having meningitis, and this was discussed with Arthur's parents after the baby had made progress with his health.
Bethany did not have any risk factors for GBS and first heard about the infection on television programme, This Morning, when former Olympic sprinter Iwan Thomas described how he had almost lost his newborn son because of a GBS infection. Bethany was coming to the end of her pregnancy by this point.
Signs of GBS infection in newborn babies:
Grunting, noisy breathing and working harder to breathe
High or low temperature and skin feels too hot or cold
Unresponsive or sleepy
Abnormally slow or fast breathing and/or heart rate
Not feeding properly
Crying or irritable
Changes in skin colour such as blotchy skin
Source: NHS and Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
Arthur is now thriving and has one more final appointment before he will be given a clean bill of health.
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