Chloe’s Law now requires all Missouri hospitals to perform critical congenital heart defect (CCHD) screenings on newborns. What will this mean for you?
The CCHD newborn screening uses pulse oximetry to check an infant’s pulse rate and blood oxygen level. A low level of blood oxygen can indicate a hidden heart defect. During the test, noninvasive sensors are placed on the baby’s hand and foot. The test is quick, painless and has a low false-positive rate.
If you give birth at any hospital in Missouri, the CCHD screening will be performed on your newborn 24 hours after birth or as close as possible to discharge.
“Defects may be so subtle that they’re not clinically apparent until days or weeks later,” says Sherrie Hauft, MD, a Washington University neonatologist at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. “Pulse oximetry may detect many abnormalities before newborns become severely sick. The number of babies discharged with undiagnosed CCHDs will be much lower thanks to this test.”
Learn more about CCHD screening.
