Routine newborn screening could catch cytomegalovirus infections before problems appear
A large study conducted at Hadassah Medical Center suggests that universal newborn screening for cytomegalovirus (cCMV) could identify many cases that currently go undetected. Researchers found that over half of the infants with cCMV appeared healthy at birth, missing the criteria for targeted testing.
Why it matters
Congenital CMV is a leading cause of non-genetic hearing loss, and early detection is critical for monitoring and intervention.
edited by Gaby Clark , reviewed by Robert Egan
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Add as preferred source Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A newborn can look perfectly healthy, pass a hearing test and still carry an infection that may affect hearing or development later in childhood. That is the challenge posed by congenital cytomegalovirus, or cCMV, one of the most common infections passed from a mother to a baby during pregnancy. Most babies born with the virus show no obvious signs at birth, making it difficult to know which children may need closer monitoring.
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