Neonatal screening for cystic fibrosis

The Health Council of the Netherlands has in 2005 provided the Minister for Health, Welfare and Sport with an Advisory Report on Neonatal Screening. In this advisory report, the Health Council highlights the advantages of neonatal screening for cystic fibrosis (CF), namely a better feeding status, prevention of an often protracted and aggravating diagnostic process and a decrease in the number of incidents of sickness and hospital admissions. Evaluations made of screening programmes performed abroad after 2005 have also demonstrated these advantages. However, the Health Council also underlined the imperfections of the screening methods available at the time, which was the basis for the recommendation to undertake research into better screening methods.

Committee

• Dr G.C.M.L. Page-Christiaens, gynaecologist, Utrecht University Medical Centre (UMC), President
• Professor M.F. Niermeijer, professor of clinical genetics, University Medical Centre St Radboud, Nijmegen, Vice-President (until 18 November 2009)
• Professor M.C. Cornel, professor of community genetics and public health genomics, VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam
• Dr J.C.J. Dute, health lawyer, University of Amsterdam
• P.C. Groeneveld, Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, observer
• Professor H.S.A. Heymans, professor of paediatrics, Amsterdam University Medical Centre
• Dr J.G. Loeber, biochemist, National Institute for Public Health and Environmental Protection, Bilthoven
• Professor G.P.A. Smit, paediatrician, Groningen University Medical Centre
• Dr M.F. Verweij, ethicist, University of Utrecht
• Dr P.A. Bolhuis, Health Council of the Netherlands, The Hague, scientific secretary