Nosocomial outbreak of Streptococcus pyogenes puerperal sepsis

Abstract In July 2018 four female patients hospitalized in the same maternal ward were diagnosed with puerperal sepsis caused by Steptococcus pyogenes.All were assisted by the same midwife in their deliveries. For active case finding diverse specimens were taken from the patients and the staff. By using a new core genome Multilocus Sequence Typing scheme, we confirmed here the transmission of a GAS strain by the only midwife involved in all deliveries that suffered from a panaritium. Still, proper hand hygiene before, during and after delivery assistance is of utmost importance.