The Food and Drug Administration has recently approved a mental disability test especially designed for infants, according to FOX News.
This test can help predict intellectual disabilities in infants by simply analyzing their genetic code. The laboratory test from Affymetrix detects variations in patients' chromosomes that are associated with down syndrome, DiGeorge syndrome and other developmental disorders. According to the National Institutes of Health, there are approximately two to three percent of children in the United States alone suffering from some sort of intellectual disability.
As of late, hospitals in all 50 states are required to screen newborns for at least 29 disorders that can be detected through laboratory testing. Likely, the latest test, also known as CytoScan Dx Assay, is designed to help doctors diagnose children's disabilities earlier to be able to provide them with the most appropriate care and support. However, the test is not intended for prenatal screening or for predicting other genetically acquired disease and conditions like cancer.
The FDA approved the new test based on studies showing it accurately analyzes a patient's entire genome and accurately spot variations associated with intellectual abilities. Although other types of tests are already available, they need to be ordered individually and can take several days to develop. Doctors said that Affymetrix's test should offer a faster, more comprehensive screening approach. The technology behind the test has already been used for several years to screen fetuses for potentially debilitating diseases. It involves a high-powered computer scanning a gene chip of the patient's DNA for slight chromosome imbalances. Affymetrix Inc. is based in Santa Clara, California.
