New vaccine for Newborns in sub-Saharan and South Asia against Group B Streptococcus (GBS)

Good news!

"Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of newborn sepsis, meningitis, and lifelong disabilities—causing 400,000 infections, 91,000 infant deaths, and 46,000 stillbirths annually, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.  

 

Yet it has long flown under the radar. It is often undetected in pregnancy, carried by 15% of women without symptoms.  

While testing and antibiotic protocols have become standard in high-income countries, many cases go undetected worldwide.

Vaccines on the horizon: A long-awaited maternal vaccine from Pfizer is now in phase 3 trials, and another vaccine from Danish company MinervaX is also under development.  ..."

"... On 25 August, a woman in the United States in her third trimester was the first to receive a shot of Pfizer’s candidate GBS vaccine as part of a long-awaited phase 3 trial. A small Danish company called MinervaX is close behind. ..."

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A shot at survival "Fifty years ago, Carol Baker [South Africa] proposed vaccinating pregnant women to save babies from a deadly microbe. Now, the idea is nearing fruition"