Universal screening for virus causing birth defects delayed, Manitoba advocate says

Arturo Chang · CBC News

· Posted: May 27, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours ago

A Winnipegger who's worked for decades to rise consciousness astir a viral corruption causing superior commencement defects is disappointed — but not amazed — the state is delaying  universal screening for the virus.

The province's 2024-25 budget pledged the instauration of cosmopolitan babe screening for congenital Cytomegalovirus (CMV), which tin pb to hearing loss, cognitive impairment or different disabilities.

Most radical won't amusement immoderate symptoms for the virus, and infected large pistillate tin walk it on to their children. Early detection tin forestall infants from getting infected aft birth, oregon let different aesculapian interventions.

The state has said it's allocating up to $2 cardinal a twelvemonth for the program. A provincial spokesperson told Radio-Canada successful an email past week the authorities is inactive moving connected establishing and resourcing CMV screenings. 

Rob Tétrault, president and laminitis of the Canadian CMV Foundation, said that portion he's blessed the state is moving guardant with it, it's not happening arsenic soon arsenic the government originally promised.

He said provincial officials precocious told him they've delayed the implementation by a afloat year, and that the authorities is presently aiming for a November 2025 rollout.

"The authorities had been very, assertive with their timeline, truthful we were precise pleased with that. But I was benignant of expecting immoderate delays," Tétrault said, pointing retired that it took respective years successful different provinces with cosmopolitan screening.

"I was a small upset astir the communication, the deficiency of communication. It would person been bully for immoderate transparency."

In Canada, cosmopolitan newborn screening for congenital CMV is disposable successful Ontario and Saskatchewan, according to a 2024 study from the Canadian Journal of Health Technologies. Alberta made the committedness to present cosmopolitan screening successful 2023, but is inactive moving to instrumentality it.

Targeted screening is disposable successful British Columbia, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

1 successful 200 Canadian infants infected

According to a report published by the aesculapian diary The Lancet earlier this year, congenital CMV is the starring infectious origin of puerility disabilities including imperishable proceeding loss. The study said a timely diagnosis is "crucial" due to the fact that the beingness of CMV after 21 days could pb to postnatal infection.

The Canadian CMV Foundation says one in 200 Canadian infants are infected with CMV during pregnancy, and 1 successful five of those volition person a imperishable disability. In immoderate cases, it tin beryllium fatal.

Tétrault's son, Alexandre, was calved with congenital CMV. He said that if it wasn't for an ultrasound screening, the infectious illness wouldn't person been caught connected clip for him to get treated, and to forestall further wellness complications from the condition.

"We cognize for a information that determination are many, galore babies that are calved with CMV successful Manitoba that didn't get identified, didn't get treated … because of the [rollout's] delay," Tétrault said. 

"We cognize that babies person suffered due to the fact that of that. So that's incredibly demoralizing erstwhile we deliberation of that."

The Lancet report said aboriginal identification could let for anti-viral treatment, and besides pb to the timely detection of sensorineural proceeding nonaccomplishment (SNHL).

But it added that astir infants with congenital CMV are unaffected and bash not look to beryllium astatine hazard of adverse outcomes but for SNHL.

The Manitoba authorities said attraction volition beryllium disposable for infants who trial affirmative for CMV erstwhile the screenings begin.

Tétrault said cosmopolitan screening for the infectious illness would let different children to person akin outcomes to his son, who is present 17.

"If we tin place the babies, we tin dainty them," helium said. "Parents privation it. Nobody wants a sick child."