Approximately 20,000 babies are born each year with birth defects due to lack of prenatal care, said Anoushiravan Mohseni Bandpei, head of the State Welfare Organization (SWO).
So far, 250 genetic counseling centers have been established across the country and “we are trying to make genetic screening mandatory before marriage,” IRNA quoted him as saying.
Currently, the coverage of hearing and strabismus screening tests for children has reached 90% and 85%, respectively.
