Group b strep, gestational diabetes and toxemia can complicate an otherwise normal pregnancy and should be taken seriously when diagnosis is confirmed by a health care provider.
Toxemia (Preeclampsia)
Toxemia (Preeclampsia) in pregnancy can be a serious condition and usually occurs in the third trimester of pregnancy. The cause of toxemia is unknown. Danger signs are protein in urine, visual disturbance, high blood pressure and swelling.
More advanced symptoms are visual disturbance, severe headaches, abdominal pain and convulsions. If you or someone you know is pregnant and has any of these symptoms a physician should be contacted without delay!
Gestational Diabetes
One of the most common complications or conditions of pregnancy is gestational diabetes . Most pregnant women are tested for it around the 26th week of pregnancy. If one has a family history of diabetes they are at greater risk of getting gestational diabetes. If one tests positive, a strict diet will be prescribed and close observation is necessary during the pregnancy.
Group B Strep (GBS)
Group B Strep (GBS) is not a pregnancy complication or condition that is harmful to most people. However, during pregnancy it can cause complications and endanger the lives of newborn babies. Read more on pregnancy complications below.
Group B Strep (streptococcus) lives in the gastrointestinal tract of men and women under normal circumstances. At intermittent times it can move from the intestinal tract to the vagina of a woman during pregnancy, or at any time for that matter, and cause a newborn baby to become ill with a bacterial infection caused by Group B Step (GBS). An infant is at risk until approximately three months of age. A woman who is in labor and about to deliver is usually swabbed to see if the bacteria is present in the vagina at the time of delivery. If it is present, antibiotics will be given to the mother and the baby at birth.
For a newborn complications include meningitis, sepsis, and pneumonia. Most survive and do well if treated and develop normally. A small percentage of babies with GBS will not survive. In a study in Britian, about 100 babies out of 700 who were diagnosed with Group B Strep did not survive.
