Pediatric Pearls. The Newborn Metabolic Screen: What's Pearl S. Buck got to do with it?

August 29, 2023

In this post, let’s take a look at the newborn metabolic screen, how it’s done and what it tests for. The answer to the question asked in the title about Pearl S. Buck will come at the end.

In the United States, there is no national standard for metabolic screening programs. Each state sets its own rules. I live and work in Massachusetts, where we are required by the MA Department of Public Health to obtain a newborn metabolic screen from each newborn that we care for on the Mother Baby Unit.

When is it done?

Ideally the blood sample is obtained when the infant is 24-48 hours of life, but any time after 24 hours until discharge from the hospital is fine for a healthy infant. It is important to give the infant at least 24 hours of eating to generate abnormal metabolites that can be picked up on the screen.

How is it done?

The state provides the hospital with newborn screening cards.

Demographic and birth information is filled out.

The infant’s heel is pricked and four circles on the bottom of the card are fully saturated with blood.