For Laboratorians

2021 ASM Guidelines

In 2021, the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) released new guidelines for detecting and identifying GBS for prevention of disease in newborns. ASM’s guidelines replace the 2010 guidelines published by CDC.

View ASM’s Guidelines for the Detection and Identification of Group B Streptococcus.

Streptococcus Laboratory

Domestically, CDC’s Streptococcus Laboratory supports the national population-based Active Bacterial Core surveillance through

  • Serotyping of S. agalactiae (GBS) isolates
  • Antimicrobial susceptibility testing
  • Strain characterization by whole genome sequencing

The lab supports training and development of improved strain surveillance methods.

Learn more about the CDC Streptococcus Laboratory and its epidemiologic and reference services.