The World Health Organisation has called on countries worldwide to scale up newborn screening programmes, warning that early detection and treatment of birth defects could save millions of lives and reduce lifelong disabilities.
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, made the appeal on Tuesday while presenting a new report focused on newborn screening as a key intervention for improving child survival and health outcomes.
A report on the agency’s website disclosed this.
According to Ghebreyesus, the report underscores strengthening newborn screening, diagnosis and management of birth defects as a critical opportunity for improving child survival globally.
He said: “Birth defects now account for almost 8 per cent of all deaths among children under five. More than 90 per cent of children born with serious birth defects live in low- and middle-income countries.”
He added that an estimated eight million babies are born with birth defects every year worldwide, stressing the need
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