LabReady Blog
Racial Inequality Increases Risk of Infant Group B Strep Infection: A Huge Problem for Women of Color and a Global Issue
According to the CDC, newborns in the U.S. are at higher risk of contracting early-onset group B strep (GBS) infection when their mother is black. This is also true, to a lesser extent, for mothers less than 20 years old. There are some confounding factors to consider: Blackness and young maternal age are also associated with “higher rates of GBS colonization, preterm birth, and socioeconomic disadvantage.” These factors are all interrelated, leading to an increased risk of GBS infection that falls along the lines of racial inequality. This is just one outcome of systemic issues that negatively affect the health of women of color (WOC) across the nation and beyond.
