“By September 30, 65,410 newborns were screened under the National Neonatal Screening Program (PNRN), 2,173 more than in the same period last year (63,237),” according to data released today by the Dr. Ricardo Jorge National Health Institute (Insa).
Data shows that July registered the highest number of babies screened (8,118), followed by September (7,886) and January (7,670).
Lisbon was the district with the highest number of “heel prick tests” (19,891), followed by Porto (11,650), Setúbal (5,229), Braga (4,880), Faro (3,310), and Aveiro (3,058).
The lowest number of exams was observed in the districts of Bragança (420), Portalegre (440), Guarda (489), Vila Real (765), and Castelo Branco (805), according to program data coordinated by Insa, through its Neonatal Screening, Metabolism, and Genetics Unit of the Department of Human Genetics.
In 2024, 84,631 babies were analyzed in Portugal, 1,133 fewer than the previous year (85,764).
The National Neonatal Screening Program has conducted screening tests on all newborns for some serious diseases, known as the “heel prick test,” since 1979.
These tests allow the identification of children suffering from almost always genetic diseases, such as phenylketonuria or congenital hypothyroidism, which can benefit from early treatment.
In 2024, 84,631 newborns were screened, and 118 patients were identified with an average age of treatment initiation of 9.5 days of life, program data reveals.
Since the beginning of the National Neonatal Screening Program, 4,309,181 newborns have been screened, and 2,796 positive cases have been identified.
