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Genomics

Rapid genomic sequencing on admission to hospital leads to more-precise care for sick infants.

In 2018, five hospitals in California launched an ambitious scheme: immediately provide rapid genomic sequencing for all babies admitted to the intensive care unit with an illness that had no obvious cause. Analysis now shows that the initiative allowed one-third of the babies to receive more targeted medical care.

David Dimmock at the Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine in San Diego, California, and his colleagues sequenced the genomes of more than 180 hospitalized infants to flag any genetic reasons for the baby’s illness. All the infants were under one year of age and received health care through a state programme.

Using the babies’ genomic data, medics diagnosed the illnesses behind 40% of cases in an average of 3 days, and the results changed medical care for 32% of the infants. Most of the diagnoses were of very rare disorders that might not have come to light otherwise.

Although scientists know that rapid genome sequencing can improve medical care in research settings, the authors say these results show that it can be effective at scale and in a state’s medical aid programme.



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