Group B streptococcal bacteremia in adults at Hartford Hospital 1991-1996

Invasive disease due to Group B streptococci has been increasingly recognized as a problem in chronically ill adults. We studied all adults presenting with bacteremia due to Group B streptococci at Hartford Hospital over a period of more than five years. Fifty-nine episodes of septicemia occurred with a mortality rate of 15.3%. Markers for mortality included cirrhosis, azotemia, transaminase elevation, respiratory distress on admission, and ionized hypocalcemia Although commonly thought of as a maternal and pediatric pathogen, nonpregnant, chronically ill adults make up the vast majority of patients with Group B streptococcal sepsis.