It is often called a ‘heel prick’ test as it involves taking a few drops of blood from the baby’s heel. While most babies look healthy, there are some medical conditions that are not visible. For this reason, all newborns in Qatar are screened for vision, hearing, metabolic and endocrine diseases as part of the Qatar Newborn Screening Program.
Within 36 to 72 hours of the baby’s birth, a drop of blood is taken from the baby’s heel to screen for over 80 disorders. Should the blood sample detect any illness, a newborn screening coordinator will contact parents immediately.
Once parents are informed about the test results, the baby’s care will continue with a multidisciplinary team who will work promptly to provide early treatment for the diagnosed condition to ensure the baby’s wellbeing and safety.
Qatar was the first country in the region to establish a national newborn screening program, which was implemented in December 2003.
Newborn screening is the practice of testing all babies in their first days of life for certain disorders and conditions that can hinder their normal development. This testing is required for babies born in any hospital in Qatar
and is typically performed before the baby leaves the hospital. If the conditions included in the newborn screening program go undetected or not treated, they can cause serious health problems starting in infancy or childhood. Early detection and treatment can help prevent intellectual and physical disabilities and life-threatening illnesses, according to Dr Tawfeg Ben Omran, Senior Consultant, Clinical and Metabolic Genetics Division at Hamad Medical Corporation.
“The newborn screening program is free of charge and is considered one of the most successful preventive public healthcare programs,” said Ben Omran.
“In other countries, there is a possibility of some newborn babies being left out form the screening . But in Qatar the Program provides a 100 percent coverage and every baby born is screened,” he added.
At the time of its inception, the screening panel included 32 disorders. Over the years, the panel has been expanded and now includes more than 80 diseases. Recently, screening for blood disorders was included and the plan is to add additional disorders. The incidence of metabolic disorders is one in 961 babies and the incidence of endocrine disorders is one in 1,767 babies.
To date, the newborn heel prick test has been administered to more than 300,000 babies across the country. The screening quickly identifies specific harmful or potentially fatal disorders that aren’t otherwise apparent at birth.
Under the Qatar Newborn Screening Program, 1,000 babies have been diagnosed with a rare disorder or genetic condition.
When it's suspected that a newborn has a disease, healthcare professionals communicate with his or her parents, taking into consideration how difficult it will be for them to hear the diagnosis. It can be an overwhelming experience for many parents because the need for treatment is almost always immediate.
The screening, which quickly identifies specific conditions and disorders that are not apparent at birth, has resulted almost all babies diagnosed in Qatar being successfully treated for potentially fatal and disabling conditions.
Qatar Newborn Screening Program is divided into three components; the Newborn Screening Unit, which works with maternity units and primary health care teams to coordinate testing and follow up of results, the specialised laboratory that conducts the testing, and the teams that provide treatment to affected babies, both short- and long-term.
