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Article: Your Baby's First Genetic Test: Five Questions for Parents to Ask About Newborn Screening in Commemoration of National Newborn Screening Month from the American College of Medical Genetics ACMG.
- Article from:
- Pediatrics Week
- Article date:
- September 20, 2008
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September is National Newborn Screening Awareness Month and the American College of Medical Genetics (www.acmg.net) strongly advocates universal newborn screening for 29 treatable conditions. In many of these diseases, serious complications such as death, disability or mental retardation are avoidable only through newborn screening, with appropriate follow-up and treatment.
"Newborn screening is a vital public health program. Through early screening, diagnosis and treatment we can prevent the truly dire consequences of a number of treatable conditions. With the current expansion of newborn screening panels, it is estimated that about 10,000 of the 4.1 million ...