• Prevalence, distribution of capsule serotypes, and resistance antibiotics of Streptococcus agalactiae among Iranian women from 2006 to 2020: A Review Analysis
  • Zahra Zareh,1,* Maryam Keshtvarz,2 Mohammad Ali Haghighi,3 Saeed Tajbakhsh,4
    1. Bushehr University Of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
    2. Bushehr University Of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
    3. Bushehr University Of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
    4. Bushehr University Of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran


  • Introduction: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is an opportunistic pathogen, especially in pregnant women, and is one of the leading causes of infant mortality worldwide. So, finding the prevalence of this pathogen along with its antibiotic resistance are vital in vaccine development. Also since the polysaccharide capsule plays an important role in the pathogenicity of GBS, the identification of various serotypes of the capsule can be important for epidemiological studies and vaccine production. Our aim was to do a review analysis of the prevalence, antimicrobial resistance patterns, and capsule serotype distributions of GBS in Iranin pregnant women in 28-40 weeks of pregnancy.
  • Methods: We searched the PubMed/Medline, Embase, and Iranian national databases for research published during 2006-2020, and identified 42 studies.
  • Results: Overall prevalence of GBS in pregnant women was 13.2%. The highest prevalence of resistance was reported for second-line drugs such as tetracycline followed by clindamycin and erythromycin. Moreover, serotype III was the most common capsule.
  • Conclusion: Due to the significant percentage of the prevalence of GBS in Iranian pregnant women, and to prevent infection of newborns, screening of this bacterium during pregnancy is recommended. Ampicillin can still be an effective drug in the treatment of GBS; however, in women who are allergic to ampicillin and penicillin, antibiogram testing should be performed before prescribing with second-line drugs. Overall, maternal vaccination, especially with serotype III is a better option.
  • Keywords: Group B Streptococcus, antibiotic resistance, Capsule.