This program is a 2-hour VHS videotape of the September 19, 2002 satellite broadcast from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The program includes stories from four families whose children's lives were saved from life-threatening diseases by newborn screening, early diagnosis, and effective management. Viewers will learn how these children have thrived through actions taken by informed parents working with medical care teams. The program follows the progress of a heel stick blood spot from the hospital, to the laboratory, to the follow-up process.

Pediatricians and experts in the field of medical genetics will speak on the diagnosis and management of children with disorders detected by newborn screening programs and the challenges that yet remain. Program panelists explore multiple areas of the newborn screening program in the U.S., from past and current practices to working toward the development of a national agenda.

After viewing the program, participants will be able to:

• Describe the evolution of newborn screening programs in the U.S.
• Discuss the current newborn screening environment and the national agenda
• Identify newly recognized metabolic disorders for which screening tests are now available
• Discuss the effect of disorders detected by newborn screening on affected children and families
• Identify collection, handling and shipping factors that affect test results
• List three examples of newborn screening tests
• Explain the significance of an effective follow-up component in the newborn screening system
• Discuss the diagnosis and management of children detected by these programs.

This program is also available as a CD-ROM.

Program Sponsors include:

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Association of Public Health Laboratories
• National Laboratory Training Network
• March of Dimes
• National Newborn Screening and Genetics Resource Center