NeoGen Labs, a leading Newborn Screening lab in India, is adding testing for neonatal blood disorders like Haemoglobinopathies, including Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) to its portfolio from next month.

It would screen for normal and abnormal Haemoglobins (F, A, S, D, E, C and other variants) in trait and homozygous forms in newborns, by HPLC technique using a Dried Blood Spot (DBS) specimen.

According to Dr Rohit Cariappa, chief scientist, NeoGen Labs, adding the Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) to the newborn screening panel will be beneficial to the large number of infants affected by it. This step also reaffirms our commitment to being at the forefront of neonatal screening to benefit babies in India.”

SCD is highly prevalent in the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Northern Maharashtra, Southern Gujarat, and Orissa. The Infant Mortality Rates (IMR) in some parts of Orissa are as high as 81/1000 and sickle cell might be one of the contributing factors since infants with SCD are at an increased risk of fatal bacterial infections and other health complications.

Although many babies suffering from SCD die before reaching the age of 5, the existing screening programmes and treatments for SCD in India are mainly focused on adults. The current belief is that treatment is needed only after the symptoms appear. However, evidence suggests that rates of morbidity and mortality are significantly reduced if SCD is picked up early through neonatal screening in the first week of life. It allows the physicians and parents an early start in the treatment regime, follow prescribed home based disease management and avail optimum prophylaxis therapies; thus preventing severe infections, death or other complications in the baby.

NeoGen Labs currently screens babies for over 51 metabolic disorders using a Dried Blood spot specimen. The same sample will be used to run the additional test for screening blood disorders.

The company was started in June 2006 to provide inborn errors of metabolism for babies in India, using Tandem Mass Spectrometry (MS/MS) and Biochemical Assays. It is a technology licensee of PerkinElmer Genetics, who pioneered the use of MS/MS in Newborn Screening. The specific MS/MS technology has been used to screen over 4 million babies annually.