Infant Jaundice
National Newborn Screening Program
The National Newborn Screening Program to eliminate disabilities is an essential part of the health system in most developed countries. It began in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1426 AH-2005 AD.
Previous statistics showed that the incidence of diseases covered by examination in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is 1/1000 births, while it is estimated at 1/4000 births in the United States of America, Australia, and Germany, and 1/10,000 births in Japan.
Vision:
Healthy Kids are key to Healthy Society.
Mission:
Maintaining community health by promoting the national newborn screening program to eliminate disabilities to reduce rates of morbidity and mortality.
Goal:
Early newborn screening to reduce morbidity, disability and mortality rates resulting from genetic diseases (metabolic, endocrine and blood diseases included in the program).
Objectives of the World Month:
September is considered the global awareness month for early screening of newborns. It aims to raise awareness about the genetic diseases included in the program, and the importance of early screening at the appropriate time to prevent complications.
Detailed Objectives:
- Expanding the program’s coverage to include all maternity hospitals in the Kingdom.
- Raising the efficiency of program performance at all levels.
- Raising the level of community awareness about the genetic diseases included in the program and activating community participation.
- Create a database to list all types of genetic diseases covered by the program.
- Continuous evaluation of the program to develop it and improve its performance.
What is the benefit of early newborn screening?
Most children appear healthy after birth, but sometimes they may carry some rare genetic diseases that may not become apparent until they are examined or detected.
What are metabolic diseases?
Metabolic diseases are part of the hereditary diseases that are transmitted by what is known as a recessive gene, meaning that the mother and father carry the hereditary characteristics of the disease and transmit it to their children at a rate of 25% in each pregnancy (the ratio of one affected newborn versus three unaffected ones). Known metabolic diseases are estimated at more than 400 metabolic diseases.
The nature of metabolic diseases is a deficiency of certain enzymes from birth, and these enzymes are important for converting one food substance into another substance in different parts of the body.
Diseases included in the newborn screening program (21 diseases so far):
1.Metabolic diseases:
Amino acid diseases:
- Phenylketonuria.
- Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD).
- Homocystinuria.
Urea Cycle Disorders:
- Argininosuccinic acidity.
- Strullenemia.
Organic acid diseases:
- Propionic acidimia.
- Methylmalonic acidimia.
- MCC-3 -Methylcorotnyl Carboxylase Deficiency.
- Biotinidase deficiency.
- Glutaric Acidemia type-1(GA).
- Isovaleric Acidemia.
- HMG-Co Lyase Deficiency (HMG).
- Beta-Ketothiolase Deficiency (BKD).
Fatty Acid Oxidation:
- Medium-chain Acyl CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MCAD).
- Very long-chain AcylCoA Dehydrogenase deficiency (VLCAD).
Diabetes:
2. Endocrine diseases:
- Hypothyroidism.
- Hyperclonality of adrenal cells.
3.Blood diseases:
- Sickle cell anemia.
- Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency (G6PD).
- Thalassemia.
How to conduct the examination?
- Several drops are taken from the heel of the child’s foot before leaving the hospital on blotting paper.
- This procedure must be performed within 24 to 72 hours after birth. The sample can also be taken within 28 days after birth if this is not possible within the first 72 hours.
- The hospital then sends these samples to the laboratory to be examined.
Notifying the result: The hospital is notified by sending all positive results via official email (MOH) and via electronic messages, in addition to telephone contact with the coordinator. He, in turn, contacts the family by phone using the phone numbers in the mother’s file or the newborn’s file to come to the clinic and then informs them of the results through the doctor inside the clinic.
General treatment procedures:
- The infant is given special milk and is prohibited from breastfeeding. After that, he must adhere to a special diet for each illness, and the child may be given special medications.
- Follow the program’s treatment protocol for emergency cases in the hospital if the child is exposed to a crisis.
Complications if timely medical care is not obtained:
- Delayed growth and development of the child.
- Learning difficulties.
- knock down.
- Coma.
- Accumulation of toxic substances inside the child’s body.
- Failure of internal organs such as the liver, kidneys and heart.
- Sometimes sudden death may occur.
For further information: