154K children examined within early detection of genetic diseases initiative: Health Ministry

CAIRO - 15 August 2022: About 154,00 children were examined as part of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s initiative for the early detection of genetic diseases in new-borns and the provision of free treatment under the "100 Million Health" initiative that was launched on July 13, announced the Health and Population Ministry on Sunday.

The initiative, in its first phase, aims to examine 19 genetic diseases in new-borns in the nurseries of the ministry’s hospitals nationwide, said Health Ministry Spokesman Hossam Abdel Ghaffar.

Head of the Health Care and Nursing Sector Wael Abdel Razek, meanwhile, said that the 19 diseases that are detected include congenital hypothyroidism, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, folic anaemia, cystic fibrosis, hereditary hyperlipidaemia, phenylketonuria, and tetraplegic deficiency hydropetrin.

The examination is carried out by taking a blood sample from the child’s ankle and analyzing it through the Egyptian Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, which is provided with a laboratory equipped with the latest international devices in the field of detecting genetic diseases, he added.

On May 6, 2022, Egypt’s Health Ministry said it has detected 1,454,000 women as part of the presidential initiative for the early detection of and free treatment for diseases transmitted from mothers to fetus since the initiative was launched in March 2020.

The initiative, launched under the presidential “100 Million Health” initiative aims to ensure early detection of infection with Hepatitis B, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and syphilis for pregnant women, said Abdel Ghaffar.

In mid-April, Health Ministry affirmed that the presidential health initiatives launched over the past years for the early detection and treatment of a number of diseases have so far supported 86 million people.