Obstetrics Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Obstetrics, including details on caesarean delivery, child birth, labour.

Water birth: is the water an additional reservoir for group B streptococcus?

Zanetti-Dällenbach R, Lapaire O, Maertens A, Frei R, Holzgreve W, Hösli I

University Women's Hospital Basel, Spitalstrasse 21, 4031, Basel, Switzerland. rzanetti@uhbs.ch

OBJECTIVE: Water birth became popular in the last years, despite the fact that many questions like the risk of infection for the newborn remain unanswered. Group B streptococcal (GBS) infections in the newborn remain a challenge in obstetrics and neonatology. METHOD: We conducted a prospective trial to study the impact of water birth on the colonization rate of the bath water and, more importantly, the GBS-colonization rate of the newborn. RESULT: After water birth the bath water was significantly more often colonized with GBS than after immersion followed by a delivery in bed. The newborns, however, showed no difference in GBS colonization and there was even a trend towards less GBS colonization of the newborn after a water delivery. CONCLUSION: Regarding GBS colonization of the newborn during water birth there might be a wash out effect, which protects the children during the delivery.

Published 23 December 2005 in Arch Gynecol Obstet, 273(4): 236-8.
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