Newborn screening in Mexico and Latin America: present and future

Abstract

The first newborn screening (NBS) program to be implemented in Latin America was in Mexico in 1974, eleven years after the initial NBS programs in other parts of the world. In the last 50 years, progress has been made in implementing and expanding NBS in Mexico and across Latin America, yet children across the region do not fully benefit from this effective public health strategy. Here, we review the progress in the implementation of expanded NBS in Latin America with a focus on Mexico and the challenges faced by its complex healthcare system. In light of new technologies such as genomic sequencing and their potential utilization for NBS, we discuss what the future of NBS may be for Mexico and countries in Latin America and the Caribbean region, given economic and technological constraints.

Keywords

Neonatal screening / NBS / ENBS / gNBS / genetic diseases / early diagnosis / precision health

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