Ontario rapped over newborn screening Sep 29, 2005
"What was evidently missing for some key decision-makers was an appreciation that newborn screening is not just some impersonal, abstracted, bureaucratic question or an issue for another day. It is a matter about unnecessary illness, suffering and death of real children. "In spite of this, successive governments have responded as though their decisions or inaction carried no human consequence and abetted no suffering," Mr. Marin wrote in the 26-page report, entitled The Right to be Impatient.... (Globe and Mail)
Sept. 13 briefing from OEP Sep 14, 2005
Until further notice, all newborn screening (PKU) specimens should be sent to the OPH Laboratory in Shreveport. Physicians, nurses and other volunteers must already be licensed by the Louisiana Board of Medical Examiners OR must be credentialed by a specialized process through DHH. Those interested are encouraged to log on to. (The Advocate)
Ontario adding 19 tests to screening of newborns Sep 8, 2005
- Phenylketonuria (PKU), a metabolic disorder that can lead to mental redardation. - Congenital hypothyroidism (CH), where there are hormonal fluctuations in the thyroid glands. (London Free Press, Canada)
BioMarin to Present at the NewsMakers in the Biotech Industry Conference Sep 8, 2005
Investigational product candidates include Phenoptin(TM) (sapropterin hydrochloride), a Phase 3 product candidate for the treatment of phenylketonuria (PKU). For additional information, please visit. (Yahoo Finance -- Biotechnology & Drugs)
More of this story Aug 24, 2005
March of Dimes has completed its sixth decade of funding breakthroughs that save babies, breakthroughs like polio vaccines, PKU testing, neonatal intensive care, surfactant therapy and nitric oxide therapy. In 1997, research probed for new ways to deliver gene therapy. (West Memphis Evening Times, AR)
Former bridge dweller considers a 'normal' life Aug 23, 2005
As a child, he was diagnosed with PKU, a metabolic disease that can cause learning disabilities if untreated, he said, adding that he also has dyslexia. His father, Burr Ridge resident Gary Dorsay, said his son suffered from emotional problems as an adolescent that required treatment. (Chicago Sun-Times)
Falling behind in screening babies Aug 11, 2005
That advisory group recommended that 29 tests be performed routinely on all babies -- a hearing test and 28 blood tests for conditions such as sickle cell anemia and PKU (phenylketonuria, which is an inability to process the amino acid phenylalanine that then accumulates and damages the brain) ... A child with undiagnosed PKU will be severely mentally retarded by age 1. (Globe and Mail -- NationalTP)
BioMarin Announces Second Quarter 2005 Financial Results Aug 2, 2005
"With regard to Naglazyme, our U.S.-commercialization effort is well under way and, in anticipation of European approval in the coming months, we have decided to go forward and establish a small, Europe-based commercial infrastructure that will allow us to market Naglazyme on our own in the European Union." Mr. Bienaime added, "We continue to enroll patients in the Phase 3 clinical trial of Phenoptin for PKU and look forward to announcing data from this trial in the first quarter of 2006." ...... (Yahoo Finance -- Biotechnology & Drugs)
Boosting tests for babies Jul 27, 2005
The law represents the evolution of a program that began in 1966 when newborns were screened for phenylketonuria, or PKU, a disease in which babies cannot eat foods high in protein such as milk, meat, eggs and cheese. The program grew in later years to include many other genetic diseases including congenital hypothyroidism, galactosemia and sickle cell disease. (Sacramento Bee -- Politics)
States decide how to screen newborns for disorders Jul 12, 2005
Diet makes all the difference in PKU, or phenylketonuria, the first condition for which newborn screening was developed more than 40 years ago. Babies with PKU can't process a part of protein called phenylalanine ... Untreated, PKU causes mental retardation. (USA Today -- Health)
