Rapid Genetic Testing Helps Find Answers for Sickest Kids

Rapid exome sequencing (rES), a blood test that can quickly detect genetic abnormalities, is helping obtain timely genetic diagnoses for critically ill children at Seattle Children’s.
A newborn boy was admitted to Seattle Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) earlier this year with arthrogryposis — a condition where an infant cannot move, their joints becoming frozen in place. When geneticist Dr. Jimmy Bennett met the infant, he was on a respirator and could only move his eyes.
“We didn’t know the cause of the arthrogryposis and could not tell the parents much about their son’s prognosis — whether he would ever come off the ventilator or if he would be intellectually disabled,” Bennett said. “With so little information, it was difficult to decide how to proceed.”
This family had a previous pregnancy that was similarly affected. Bennett believed the cause might be genetic and recommended rapid exome sequencing (rES) — a blood test that can quickly detect genetic abnormalities.
Less than a week later, the test identified a specific condition that led providers to administer an appropriate therapy. Before long, the child was moving.
“Never in a million years would we have tried this therapy without the genetic test results,” Bennett said. “Two weeks later, the patient was off the ventilator and moving all four limbs. It was like a miracle.” Read full post »