Newborn screening is the largest screening program in the United States with approximately four million newborns screened yearly. It is a mandated public health program designed for the identification of disorders in children. It is designed to provide rapid diagnosis and allow early therapy for specific metabolic, infections, and other genetic disorders for which early intervention reduces disabilities and death. This important practice typically occurs before the development of signs or symptoms of disease. Newborn screening programs are comprised of a complex, integrated clinical service of education, screening, diagnosis, follow-up, evaluation, and often long-term management. The list of recommended conditions for newborn screening programs is continually being evaluated. Integrating education about newborn screening into prenatal care allows parents to be prepared for having their child undergo screening as well as for receiving newborn screening test results. Furthermore, parents often view their care from prenatal management through pediatrics as a continuum of care without health care provider distinctions. This can be accomplished at different moments in prenatal care: 1) during the first-trimester new obstetric visit and include written or web-site information along with other patient education materials, 2) later in pregnancy with other educational information is routinely distributed, such as at the time of glucola or group B streptococcal screening in the third trimester, 3) during a discussion of past adverse pregnancy outcomes related to a positive newborn screening test result or birth defect, at the same time that options for prenatal or preimplantation genetic screening or diagnostic testing are considered.Read More