Group B streptococcal bacteremia in a community teaching hospital

Group B streptococcal bacteremia outside the perinatal setting is not commonly emphasized. This report reviews all episodes of group B streptococcal bacteremia during a four and a half year period in a large community teaching hospital. Fourteen episodes occurred in neonates, four in parturient women, and 28 in other adults. Bacteremic adults were usually elderly with an average age of 68 years. Group B streptococcal bacteremia occurred in adults with various underlying diseases, including diabetes mellitus, liver disease, peripheral vascular disease, and hematologic disease, and in those receiving long-term steroid therapy. Infections causing group B streptococcal bacteremia in adults included decubitus ulcers, pneumonia, endocarditis, cellulitis, arthritis, osteomyelitis, and meningitis. Thirteen of 28 episodes of group B streptococcal bacteremia in adults were hospital-acquired. Overall mortality in adults was 70 percent. Group B streptococcal bacteremia in adults outside of the perinatal setting is associated with significant underlying diseases and has a high mortality.