All babies born in Ireland are screened for 9 rare conditions between 72 hours (Day 3) and 120 hours (Day 5) after birth. This ensures that babies with these rare conditions can be given early and appropriate care and treatment. This is commonly known as the ‘heel prick test’. It involves taking a small amount of blood from a baby’s heel onto a screening card for testing. These screening cards are sent to the National Newborn Screening Laboratory, Temple Street, Dublin, where they are analysed for the following conditions: Phenylketonuria (PKU), Classical Galactosaemia, Homocystinuria (HCU), Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD), Medium Chain Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase Deficiency (MCADD), Glutaric Aciduria Type 1 (GA1), Cystic Fibrosis, Congenital Hypothyroidism and Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency – Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (ADA-SCID).
For full information go to: www.newbornscreening.ie