Dr. Robert Guthrie developed the screening test for PKU. According to Brosco and Paul, this was a historical turning point in public health. Brosco and Paul stated, “In the early 1960s, parents of children with intellectual disability began to advocate for state laws to test all newborns in the United States, and the first state laws for universal newborn screening (NBS) were implemented 50 years ago” (Brosco and Paul). Since infants born with PKU had a decreased risk of mental impairment by following a PKU diet early in life, public awareness was at its peak. This lead to 32 states in the US enacting screening laws by 1965. Also, by the mid-1970s, screening newborns for PKU became routine in almost every developed country and even many poorer countries. According to Brosco and Paul, “In the 1990s and 2000s, PKU served as the paradigmatic example for advocates eager to expand NBS” (Brosco and Paul). Newborn screening is not only important in helping individuals with PKU, it can help identify many other conditions and diseases that make it possible for newborns to live better lives.
Brosco, J., & Paul, D. (2013). The political history of PKU: Reflections on 50 years of newborn screening. Pediatrics, 132(6), 987-9.
Microbiologist Dr. Robert Guthrie
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Phenylketonuria was first observed by a Norwegian biochemist in 1934
Ivar Asbjørn Følling
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PKU 