Vital Health Screenings Your Child Needs

Regular health and development checks are recommended for all babies and young children to ensure they are growing and developing normally, and to manage any health problems early on. These regular visits are a great time to raise and discuss any concerns you have about your child’s health and development. You can also talk about how you are feeling and any worries you have about your own health and being a parent.

The timing and frequency of health checks may vary, but they are generally recommended at birth, one to four weeks, six to eight weeks, and at four, six to nine, 12 and 18 months of age, then at two, three to three and a half, and four to five years of age.

At each visit, your child and family health nurse or doctor will check your baby’s health and weight, discuss eating and physical activity habits, and assess things such as their eyesight and hearing, teeth and gums, sleeping habits, language and physical development, and social and emotional wellbeing.

1. Newborn screens

• The Apgar score, the first test your baby will ever have immediately after birth, evaluates your baby’s color, heart rate, activity, muscle tone and response to stimulation. This test helps to determine if the baby is depressed, under stress or lacking oxygen—and if intervention is needed.
• The metabolic screen—a heel prick test—is another important test that is done within 48 hours after birth. Your baby’s blood will be screened for a host of metabolic and genetic disorders like hypothyroidism and sickle cell disease. Although these conditions are rare, they can be devastating, so picking them up early is key.
• A brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER) test, also done in the hospital, evaluates your baby’s hearing from the brain stem level, can detect congenital deafness early on.

2. Head circumference

Measured meticulously at every well visit from birth to 2 years old, your baby’s head circumference is one of the most important tools available to the pediatrician. If your baby’s growth slows, it could mean that the seams of the skull are fusing too early or that he has a congenital infection or a developmental delay.

Rapid head growth, on the other hand, could indicate a serious condition like Hydrocephalus.

3. Autism​

During infancy and toddlerhood, your pediatrician will ask about key developmental milestones, like eye contact, social interaction and play. At 18 and 24 months old, a questionnaire called the M-CHAT (Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers) will screen for autism. As your child gets older, his behavioral and social development will constantly be evaluated as well.

4. Height and Weight

At every well visit, these two measurements will be charted to determine BMI (body mass index), which is the best way to identify a child’s risk for being overweight or obese. On the flip side, BMI can also point to a potential eating disorder. Your doctor will also ask about your child’s diet, eating habits, and exercise.

5. Hemoglobin

At 1 year and 2 years old, your child’s hemoglobin will be tested to make sure he’s not deficient in iron. If you are anemic, your brain doesn’t work well and you can lose IQ points over time, and thus anemia can also affect your child’s activity. It’s a big stressor on the heart, the brain, the cardiovascular system and even on growth.

6. Lead

Approximately four million homes house kids who are being exposed to lead, according to the CDC. Lead exposure can affect your child’s IQ and high levels can be toxic. At 1 year and 2 years old, your child’s pediatrician will ask about your home environment, toys your child plays with and what your baby puts in his or her mouth. A blood test to determine lead exposure may also be ordered.

7. Vision

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children see an eye doctor every year between the ages of 3 and 6 – and then every other year. Starting at 9 months old, your pediatrician might suggest your child be screened with the Visual Evoked Potential machine, which presents a series of images. It can measure the electrical activity of the brain in the vision center and see if there is equal activity on both sides.

8. Scoliosis

Scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine, usually shows up between the ages of 10 and 15. As soon as your child can touch her toes, she should be screened for the condition, because it could become more severe later on in life.

9. Diabetes

Screening for diabetes is not routine, but it’s definitely on the minds of parents, since obese adults are more likely to be pre-diabetic. In fact, kids with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes have increased more than 20 percent since 2001, according to the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth study.

If your child is losing weight or has excessive urination, your pediatrician may test him or her for type 1 diabetes. Kids with type 2 diabetes usually gain weight, are sluggish and are not active. If your child has acanthosis nigricans – or a darkening and velvety texture of the skin around the neck or under the armpits – he or she should be screened for high levels of insulin, lipids and cortisone.