Metascreen™ adopts FDA approved GC-MS technology and uses the urine specimen of your newborn baby to screen for metabolic disorders, which is a non-invasive specimen collection and will not cause any harm or discomfort to your baby. As many metabolic disorders are organic acid disorders (also known as “organic acidemias”), they can be detected more accurately using urine, based on the abnormal excretion patterns of the metabolites as a result of faulty metabolism caused by the disorder.
In contrast, our kidneys remove unwanted or toxic metabolites from the blood, such compounds are excreted in large amounts in the urine, but may not be found in significant concentrations in blood. The American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG) actually recommends urine organic analysis as the diagnosis step for many of the organic acidemias and amino acidemia, should there be a positive newborn screening result using the dried blood spot analysed by tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS).
Metascreen™ The Most Comprehensive Newborn Metabolic Diseases Screening

Professional & Reliable
FDA approved GC-MS screening technology using urine to detect >100 types of metabolic disorders with high accuracy and specificity.

Simple & Painless
The urine sample can be easily collected by placing a filter paper in the diaper. This collection is non-invasive and causes no discomfort to your baby.

Flexible & Expandable
Screening can be performed from 48 hours after birth or up to 6 months old. Ideally, your baby should be screened between 2 to 7 days after birth.

International Accreditation
The lab is located at Hong Kong Science and Technology Park and accredited by The College of American Pathologists (CAP), which has stringent standards for laboratory operations, quality and technology.

Timely Report
Results will be available within 10 - 14 working days for prompt follow-up with a paediatrician if necessary.
Advantages of MetascreenTM Over Other Screening Services
Metascreen™ (GC-MS Tech.) |
Others (MS-MS Tech.) | |
---|---|---|
Painless &Non-invasive | Urine sample | Blood sample from heel prick |
Diseases Coverage | >100 types | Around 20-30 types |
Accuracy | No false result reported | Higher false positives, 0.07-3.00% |
Specificity | Specific result using multiple analyte profiles | Confirmatory test is needed for verification |
Diagnostic Time | From screening and confirmation to diagnosis | From screening to confirmation then finally to diagnosis |