Why is the recheck rate of heel blood so high?

Heel blood screening is a relatively common examination method. This examination is very effective in determining whether a child has congenital hypothyroidism or phenylketonuria, because these two diseases are relatively harmful to children. If such diseases occur, it will cause the baby's intelligence to decline. Therefore, this examination should be carried out in a timely manner. Let us learn about this aspect.

Heel blood tests are mainly used to check for phenylketonuria (PKU) and hypothyroidism (CH). If these two diseases are not treated in time, they can cause severe intellectual disability in the baby. However, if they are discovered, diagnosed and treated early in the neonatal period, serious harm to the baby can be avoided.

Collection method

Heel blood sampling should be done within 3 to 7 days after birth and the newborn should be fully breastfed. For those who do not have blood drawn for various reasons (premature babies, low birth weight babies, those discharged early, etc.), the blood should be drawn no later than 20 days after birth. Newborn disease screening is done by collecting heel blood from the newborn at the delivery hospital (the blood is dropped onto a special paper and the blood spot is then sent to the Newborn Disease Screening Center for testing).

1. Hold the sole of your foot with your left hand;

2. When drawing blood, squeeze the sole of the foot with your left hand, and at the same time, hold the calf on the same side with your right hand, using moderate force and relaxing intermittently;

4. Warm your feet and let the blood flow out naturally without squeezing;

5. After taking a bath, use a warm towel to apply heat to the blood collection point;

6. In addition to routine blood collection, blood should be collected from newborns after regular breastfeeding, bathing, and alcohol heel massage.

The purpose of blood sampling is to check for blood diseases. A heel prick blood test is done when the baby is more than 72 hours old and no more than one month old to screen for two diseases: congenital phenylketonuria and hypothyroidism. The main symptoms of these two diseases are stupidity, slow reaction, developmental delay, etc. Once diagnosed, the state provides free treatment, with a cure rate of over 95%. If you don't get screened, you won't be able to cure the disease if you get it in the future. Generally, the results of heel blood collection will be available within about one month. If the test result is positive, it means that a related disease is suspected and a re-examination is required, then blood will have to be drawn again. If the test report is negative, there is no need to draw blood again.

Medical institutions notify families of babies whose newborns screen positive for disease by phone or letter, so the telephone number and mailing address left by pregnant women and their families at the delivery hospital must be true and valid. Parents of babies whose newborn disease screening results are positive should take their babies to the local newborn disease screening center for follow-up as soon as possible to avoid delaying the disease. The screening center will provide diagnosis and treatment for your baby.