The association of preterm labor with colonization of group B streptococci vaginal

Background: group b streptococcus is regarded as a potential factor for adverseoutcomes of pregnancy such as preterm birth.objective: to study the association of maternal vaginal colonization with group bstreptococcus (gbs) and preterm labor.materials and methods: from april 2005 to may 2006, vaginal culture for gbs wereconducted in 101 laboring women with a gestational age of 24-37 weeks and 105women admitted for term delivery at maternity center ofafzalipour hospital in kerman,iran. student's t test and chi square test were used to compare continuous andcategorical data between the groups. using multivariate logistic regression theassociation between gbs colonization and preterm labor was analyzed. p-values<0.05were considered as significant.results: colonization was detected in 9.2% of all mothers. although gbs colonizationwas found more frequently in preterm than term patients (12 vis 7 cases), the differencewas not statistically significant. however, gbs positivity was roughly associated withpreterm labor. age was also a risk factor for gbs colonization. no case of perinatalsepsis occurred during the study period.conclusion: maternal colonization for gbs is relatively low in our center. increasingage enhances the risk of colonization. vaginal colonization of gbs is relativelyassociated with preterm labor.