Symptoms, Brain Injury Risks, and Legal Help
Group B Streptococcus, often called Group B Strep or GBS, is a type of bacteria that can live in the body without making an adult sick. In many pregnant women, it causes no symptoms throughout pregnancy.
GBS is dangerous because the bacteria can pass to a baby during labor and delivery and cause a serious infection after birth.
GBS infection in newborns is often grouped into two types. Early-onset GBS disease happens during the first week of life, often within the first 24 to 48 hours. Late-onset GBS occurs between 7 and 89 days of age. Early-onset disease is more closely linked to exposure during labor and delivery, while late-onset disease can come from other sources and is harder to prevent.
Because GBS can become dangerous quickly, doctors, nurses, and hospitals must take proper steps before, during, and after delivery. When risk factors are present, timely testing, antibiotics during labor, newborn monitoring, and fast treatment can make a major difference.
Symptoms of GBS Infection in Newborns
GBS infection can look different from baby to baby. While some newborns become sick very quickly, others may show subtle warning signs at first that gradually worsen. If a newborn seems unusually sick, weak, difficult to wake, or has breathing problems, parents should seek emergency care.
Common symptoms may include:
- Fever or low body temperature.
- Trouble breathing.
- Fast breathing, grunting, or pauses in breathing.
- Blue, gray, or pale skin color.
- Poor feeding.
- Vomiting.
- Extreme sleepiness or difficulty waking.
- Irritability or unusual crying.
- Limpness or poor muscle tone.
- Seizures.
- Bulging soft spot on the head.
- Low blood pressure.
- Fast heart rate.
- Signs of shock.
- Abnormal blood sugar.
- Jaundice or worsening yellowing of the skin or eyes.
- Signs of meningitis, such as seizures, stiffness, poor feeding, or unusual behavior.
These symptoms should never be treated as “normal” newborn tiredness. Newborn infections can move fast, and the consequences can be life-changing. Sick newborns with possible GBS infection may need lab testing, cultures, prompt antibiotics, and supportive care, especially if they have fever, respiratory distress, metabolic problems, or septic shock.
Injuries and Complications Caused by GBS Infection
GBS infection is an extremely dangerous illness that can be fatal.
One of the major concerns is sepsis, which occurs when infection spreads through the bloodstream and triggers a dangerous whole-body response. Sepsis can cause significant organ damage, shock, and death if not treated quickly. Sepsis can cause low blood pressure, poor blood flow, organ damage, shock, and death if not treated quickly.
Another concern is pneumonia, which affects the lungs and can make it hard for the baby to breathe. Babies with pneumonia may require oxygen, breathing support, a ventilator, or treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit. Serious breathing problems can also place the baby at risk for oxygen-related brain injury, which can cause brain damage and permanent injury.
Meningitis is another major concern as the infection attacks the brain and spinal cord coverings. Meningitis is known to cause seizures, brain swelling, hearing loss, vision problems, developmental delays, cerebral palsy, and long-term neurological problems.
While some babies recover with prompt treatment, others suffer permanent injuries. In the most severe cases, GBS infection can be fatal. That’s it’s critical that staff recognize issues early and provide quick treatment.
Possible Medical Malpractice Involving GBS Infection
Some GBS infections happen even when doctors and nurses do everything right. However, GBS infection may raise legal concerns when medical providers fail to follow accepted standards of care before, during, or after delivery.
Possible examples of medical malpractice may include:
- Failure to screen the mother for GBS during pregnancy.
- Failure to document or communicate a positive GBS test result.
- Failure to recognize GBS bacteria in the mother’s urine during pregnancy.
- Failure to give IV antibiotics during labor when indicated.
- Giving antibiotics too late or using the wrong antibiotic.
- Failure to account for a penicillin allergy and choose an appropriate alternative.
- Failure to recognize risk factors such as preterm labor, fever during labor, and prolonged rupture of membranes, or prior delivery of a baby with GBS disease.
- Failure to monitor the baby after birth when risk factors were present.
- Failure to recognize symptoms of newborn infection.
- Delay in ordering blood cultures, lab work, or other testing.
- Delay in starting antibiotics for a sick newborn.
- Failure to transfer the baby to a NICU or higher level of care.
- Failure to treat breathing problems, low blood pressure, seizures, or signs of sepsis.
- Discharging the mother and baby too soon without proper instructions or follow-up.
Group B Streptococcal Infection in Newborns FAQs
Can GBS infection cause brain damage?
Yes. When GBS infection leads to meningitis, severe sepsis, shock, poor oxygen delivery, seizures, or swelling around the brain, brain damage can occur. Because meningitis involves infection around the brain and spinal cord, it is especially dangerous to the brain. In some cases, babies who survive GBS meningitis later have hearing loss, vision problems, developmental delays, seizures, cerebral palsy, or learning problems.
The risk of long-term injury largely depends on how severe the infection was, how quickly it was treated, and whether the baby suffered complications such as low blood pressure, breathing failure, or prolonged seizures.
How is GBS infection treated in newborns?
Newborn GBS infection is usually treated with IV antibiotics in the hospital. If meningitis is suspected, doctors may order blood cultures, lab tests, spinal fluid testing, chest X-rays, and other monitoring. Some babies may require care in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Treatments for GBS can also include oxygen, a ventilator, IV fluids, blood pressure support, seizure medication, and careful monitoring of blood sugar and organ function. Rapid treatment is important because newborn infections can worsen quickly, and a delay in recognizing infection or starting antibiotics can increase the risk of severe injury.
Can GBS infection be prevented?
While many cases can be prevented, not all are avoidable. The Centers for Disease Control advise pregnant women to be screened for GBS, and women at increased risk should receive IV antibiotics during labor. These antibiotics help protect the baby during birth.
Because the bacteria can grow back, antibiotics taken before labor or by mouth do not reliably prevent newborn GBS disease. Late-onset GBS disease is harder to prevent, and health experts have not identified an effective prevention strategy for it. Prevention depends on proper screening, communication, labor care, and newborn monitoring.
Is every GBS infection medical malpractice?
No. A baby can develop GBS infection even when medical providers follow the correct steps. However, if providers fail to screen the mother, ignore a positive test, fail to give antibiotics during labor when needed, miss clear risk factors, fail to monitor the baby, or delay treatment after symptoms appear, it may be considered malpractice.
The key question is whether the medical team acted as reasonably careful providers should have acted under the circumstances. Medical records, lab results, fetal monitoring records, labor notes, and newborn treatment records can help answer that question and show where negligence may have occurred.
How long do parents have to bring a claim in Florida?
In Florida, medical malpractice claims must usually be filed within 2 years of the date the malpractice was discovered or reasonably should have been discovered. Florida law also has a statute of repose, which can block many malpractice claims more than four years after the incident, even if the injury was not discovered right away.
However, cases involving young children may have special timing rules, and no Florida medical malpractice case involving a child may be brought after the child’s eighth birthday except in very specific cases. Because these rules and deadlines are strict and fact-specific, parents should speak with a Florida medical malpractice attorney as soon as they suspect a medical mistake contributed to their newborn’s GBS infection.
What records matter in a newborn GBS malpractice case?
Parents considering legal action should gather records such as prenatal test results, GBS screening results, urine culture results, labor and delivery notes, medication records, antibiotic timing, maternal fever records, rupture of membranes timing, fetal monitoring strips, newborn vital signs, NICU records, blood cultures, spinal fluid results, imaging, discharge instructions, and follow-up records.
These records will give your attorney and medical experts insight into whether providers knew or should have known about GBS risk factors. Records can also show whether antibiotics, monitoring, testing, and treatment were timely. Families should try to preserve all hospital paperwork and write down what they remember while the details are fresh.
Why should parents contact Weisser Law if they suspect malpractice played a role?
If parents believe a preventable medical mistake may have contributed to their baby’s GBS infection or injuries, they should contact Weisser Law right away. These cases often require a careful review of prenatal records, labor notes, antibiotic timing, newborn symptoms, test results, and NICU treatment.
Weisser Law will work with families to help them understand whether doctors or nurses missed warning signs, failed to follow GBS prevention steps, or delayed treatment after the baby became sick. A consultation can also help parents understand their legal options, potential compensation, and any applicable deadlines. The sooner the case is reviewed, the easier it may be to protect important evidence.
Weisser Law offers free, confidential consultations where you won’t pay until we win your case.