Landscape of Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia Newborn Screening in the United States

Abstract

Newborn screening (NBS) is a state-based public health program that aims to identify newborns at risk of certain disorders in the first days after birth to prevent permanent disability or death. Disorders on the Health and Human Services Federal Advisory Committee’s Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) have been adopted by most state NBS programs; however, each state mandates specific disorders to be screened and implements their own system processes. Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) was added to the RUSP in 2005, and currently all 53 NBS programs universally screen for it. This paper provides a landscape of CAH screening in the United States, utilizing data voluntarily entered by state NBS programs in the Newborn Screening Technical assistance and Evaluation Program data repository. Data reported encompasses NBS state profile data (follow-up, disorder testing and the reporting of processes and methodologies for screening), quality indicator data (timeliness of CAH NBS) and confirmed cases. This comprehensive landscape analysis compares the CAH NBS systems across the US. This is vital in ultimately ensuring that newborns with CAH at risk of salt crisis receive appropriate intervention in a timely manner.