The Advisory Committee for Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children, which provides advice and recommendations on universal newborn screening to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has voted to recommend the addition of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) to the uniform newborn screening panel.

SCID is a group of disorders characterized by the absence of an immune system, causing infants with SCID to develop recurrent infections, leading to death in early childhood. Treatment in the first months after birth can prolong life and prevent infections.

Six conditions have been brought to the Advisory Committee since its initial recommendations were made in 2005: SCID, Fabry Disease, Krabbe Disease, Niemann-Pick Disease, Pompe Disease, and Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). Thus far, only SCID has been recommended to be added to the uniform newborn screening panel. By law, the Secretary of Health and Human Services must respond to the recommendation within 180 days.

Source: Genetic Alliance