Increased Frequency of High Serum IgM among Mothers of Infants with Neonatal Group-B Streptococcal Septicemia

Abstract

Total serum IgM levels were studied in 84 mothers of infants with group-B streptococcal (GBS) septicemia/meningitis and compared to IgM concentrations in 91 parturients who were urogenital carriers of GBS but nevertheless gave birth to healthy infants. In all, 22 (27%) in the study group showed IgM levels above the arbitrarily selected limit of 2.40 g/l, in contrast to 12 (13%) of 91 controls (p = 0.02). Among the study group members whose infants were infected with GBS type III, 8 of 34 (24%) were high in serum IgM, compared to only 2 of 34 (6%) of the corresponding controls (p = 0.04). The total serum IgG levels did not differ between the two groups.

Group B Streptococcal Infections

“…Among 34 Swedish mothers of infants with group B streptococcal disease, Grubb and coworkers [404] identified a surplus of individuals possessing G3m(5) and a deficit of individuals with G1m(1). There could be genetically determined explanations for the deficiency of IgG subclasses [406], high IgM concentration with divergent ratio of IgG to IgM [407,408], and chronic colonization state without immunologic response [409] described in Swedish mothers of infants with group B streptococcal disease. The distribution of allotypic markers may influence responses to protein and polysaccharide antigens.…”