Leading Newborn Screening Organization Announces Partnership to Support Advocacy on Global Level

CINCINNATI, April 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Save Babies Through Screening Foundation (SBTS), the only national volunteer-run nonprofit organization devoted exclusively to the advocacy of newborn screening (NBS), is pleased to announce a new partnership with World Solutions Against Infectious Diseases (WSAID). Since 2010, WSAID has been working on behalf of newborn screening programs, laboratories, professionals and most importantly, newborns and their families in Latin America. 

"The partnership with WSAID represents our commitment to newborn screening advocacy on a global scale," said Jill Levy-Fisch, President of SBTS. "Every newborn in the world deserves access to newborn screening, diagnosis, treatment and the best possible quality of life. Combining our broad experience and support for newborn screening with WSAID's work with the medical community in Latin America is a crucial step toward achieving these goals."

SBTS and WSAID will build awareness around comprehensive newborn screening and reliable infectious disease detection programs. Newborn screening is necessary to ensure that newborns do not die from diseases that are treatable if detected at an early stage. Through the partnership, SBTS and WSAID will work with countries in Latin America that currently lack newborn screening and seek to expand programs in countries where testing is limited to only a relatively small number of disorders.

"Save Babies Through Screening Foundation and WSAID share the goal of ensuring that newborn screening is available to all newborns and is performed with the highest standards of safety and quality control," said Maria Corena McLeod, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, WSAID. "We are committed to disseminating information regarding the importance of newborn screening around the world to make sure that parents and caregivers can provide the best possible care for their children."

WSAID works with laboratories and newborn screening programs in South and Central America and is currently working to extend their efforts to programs and laboratories in Africa, Asia and other locations in need of support.

SBTS and WSAID's combined efforts will help improve the health of newborns around the globe.

About World Solutions Against Infectious Diseases

WSAID was founded by two professionals sharing a common goal to fight infectious diseases and to help others around the world. The organization has worked tirelessly during the last three years with the help of a dedicated group of scientists, physicians, vector control personnel and engineers to build capacity to fight infectious diseases in Africa, South and Central America.  Although scientists and physicians in these countries have the knowledge and experience to detect and fight infection, lack of technology and resources constitute a challenge to their efforts. WSAID's goal is to help them contribute to develop self-sustainable initiatives to fight infectious diseases and prevent disease transmission through an integrated approach that combines technology exchange and innovative educational programs. Recently, WSAID became involved in newborn screening because many of the disorders detected by newborn screening are related to infection. In addition, infectious diseases such as congenital HIV and toxoplasmosis (among others) are prevalent in developing countries and contribute to high infant mortality and diminished quality of life. These diseases can be detected early through newborn screening facilitating treatment, improved chances of survival and better quality of life for newborns. Furthermore, in this era of globalization and travel, the ability to detect and prevent diseases transmissible to the community highlights the importance of newborn screening programs in public health.     

For more information about WSAID, please visit www.wsaid.org.

About Save Babies Through Screening Foundation

Comprised of volunteers whose lives have been touched by newborn screening (NBS), Save Babies Through Screening Foundation is the only advocacy organization in the country dedicated to NBS. SBTS aims to educate parents, pediatric healthcare providers and policy makers about available comprehensive NBS, the importance of obtaining positive or other test results requiring follow-up actions within five days of birth and the importance of prompt confirmatory testing and treatment/management when needed. The Foundation's goal is to see that every baby born in the U.S. is screened successfully, effectively and comprehensively.

For additional information about SBTS, to learn how you can get involved in the cause and to share with families, please visit www.savebabies.org and connect with SBTS on Facebook and Twitter. 

For further information, please contact:

Steven Pludwin
Ricochet Public Relations
[email protected]
(212) 679-3300 ext. 136

SOURCE Save Babies Through Screening Foundation