THE mum of a newborn baby who nearly died from an infection contracted during birth wants mothers to know they can be tested for the bug.

Samantha May Graham, 31, said staff at York Hospital saved her daughter's life when she twice developed meningitis caused by a Group B Strep (GBS) infection - which she says could have been avoided had she taken a simple test while pregnant.

Lola was rushed to hospital when she was nearly two-weeks-old after Samantha called NHS 111 when her daughter began to act unusually. She was making grunting sounds, her skin became mottled and she was repeatedly lifting her legs up and down.

An ambulance was sent to their home within five minutes and a seriously ill Lola was diagnosed with meningitis.

While being cared for at York Hospital she suffered fits due to the pressure on her brain and was sedated and put on an antibiotic drip.

"Everything was a blur - it was a worrying time," she said, "Every day was heartbreaking, seeing your little girl fighting for her life."

After being allowed to return home to Dringhouses with her mum and dad Stephen Soulsby, 42, Lola was rushed back into hospital with a reinfection.

Seven-week-old Lola has now spent five weeks of her life in hospital and a consultant has told the family that a scan of Lola's brain suggests the possibility of a disability in the future but the extent this will affect her will not be known until she gets older.

Samantha has said that had she known what she does now she would have chosen to be tested for Group B Strep during pregnancy and she wants mothers to know they are able to do this. "I would hate anyone to go through what me and Steve have been through," she said, "It's every parent's worst nightmare."

Group B Strep bacteria can live harmlessly in the body - up to two in five people have it - and it can be passed on to the baby during delivery causing a range of serious infections including sepsis, pneumonia and meningitis. Most women will not realise they are a carrier.

On average, two babies each day in the UK develop a Group B Strep infection and each week, one baby dies and another is left with a life-changing disability.

The UK does not routinely screen for it, unlike other countries, but the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has said that any woman who goes into labour before 37 weeks should be offered antibiotics as a precaution, even if her waters have not broken and the protective amniotic sac surrounding the baby in the womb is still intact.

They also say women who have tested positive for GBS in a previous pregnancy can be tested at 35 to 37 weeks in subsequent pregnancies to see if they also need antibiotics in labour.

But they do not go as far as recommending routine screening of mothers-to-be as there is no clear evidence that this would be beneficial, as previously stated by the government's National Screening Committee.

Campaigners disagree. Group B Strep Support say they would like every pregnant woman to be offered the opportunity to be tested for the bacteria as they are in other countries including United States, Canada, Germany, France and Spain.

They say most GBS infections in newborn babies could be prevented by identifying carriers during pregnancy and offering them intravenous antibiotics during labour.

A private test can cost from £35 privately, with further information available on their website at www.gbss.org.uk/test

Samantha and Steve have thanked Ward 17 at York Hospital and consultant Dominic Smith for the care they have given to Lola. Samantha said: "The care has been outstanding from the doctors, nurses and consultants.

"They are all a credit to the NHS."