IDPH Marks 60 Years of Newborn Screening Efforts in Illinois

SPRINGFIELD – With Newborn Screening Awareness Month underway in September, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is celebrating 60 years of this system in Illinois. Beginning in 1965 with testing for a single situation, Illinois’s new child screening program now checks for greater than 50 situations, providing the hope of early analysis and intervention when wanted. More than 100,000 newborns are examined yearly within the state.

“IDPH is proud to be a leader in supporting families with our newborn screening program,” mentioned IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra. “For the past 60 years in Illinois, newborn screens have detected potentially life-threating conditions in healthy babies before they show symptoms. Each year, more than 500 babies in our state are diagnosed through this vital public health service. Early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of these conditions can prevent serious health outcomes, enabling Illinois’s children to reach their full potential.”

Illinois’s new child screening program started in 1965 with required testing for a single dysfunction, phenylketonuria (PKU). PKU is a genetic dysfunction that’s normally asymptomatic at delivery, however can result in severe well being and developmental issues if left untreated. Since then, this system has expanded to cowl greater than 50 separate situations, together with congenital coronary heart illness; metabolic, genetic, and blood problems; listening to loss; and extra.

Testing by way of blood draw is normally achieved inside the first 24 to 48 hours of life; a separate screening check is used inside the identical timeframe to examine for listening to loss.

In 2024, almost 123,000 new child infants have been screened for these situations statewide. For situations detected by way of lab testing, simply over 0.2 p.c resulted in a analysis requiring medical intervention. Similarly, checks for listening to loss resulted in a analysis requiring remedy for simply over 0.2 p.c of these examined. In complete, round 500 infants final 12 months acquired early remedy for situations that might have in any other case gone undetected with out new child screening.

For extra info on Illinois’s new child screening efforts, go to Newborn Screening.