The NHS in England is to screen 100,000 newborn babies for more than 200 genetic conditions in a world-first scheme aimed at bolstering early diagnosis and treatment.
All new parents are currently offered a blood spot test for their babies, normally when the child is five days old, to check whether they have any of nine rare but serious conditions. The newborn’s heel is pricked to collect a few drops of blood on a card that is sent away to be tested.
