Vol. 545 No. 5
59 Mr. Bell asked the Minister for Health and Children the implications for public health policy of the recent decision of the Supreme Court that parents had the right to refuse to allow a PKU test to be carried out on their child; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30891/01]
The PKU test is a blood test that has been available for over 30 years and is normally carried out between 72 and 120 hours after birth. Its purpose is to test for the presence of four metabolic conditions and one endocrine condition in children. It is common to all these conditions that they are treatable, but once the damage has been caused by one of these conditions it is usually irreversible and thus it is medically considered of great importance to have the condition diagnosed at as early a stage as possible.
My Department is currently giving consideration to the implications of the recent Supreme Court decision that parents have the right to refuse to allow a PKU test to be carried out on their child.
