WHO calls on countries to expand newborn screening

A landmark moment for the global newborn screening community: World Health Organization urges countries to expand newborn screening to detect critical conditions early and reduce preventable deaths.

A new WHO report, “Strengthening capacity for newborn screening, diagnosis and management of birth defects,” identifies newborn screening as an important opportunity to accelerate progress in child survival.

WHO is calling on countries to plan and implement screening programmes for one or more conditions, ensuring that babies are not only tested, but also diagnosed and connected to care — starting with at least one priority condition, based on national context and disease burden.

“This is extremely important since WHO has previously not taken a positive position on newborn screening,” says Bradford Therrell, Newborn Screening Consultant and Director at the National Newborn Screening and Global Resource Center.

Find out more at WHO News page at this link.