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Screenings and Vaccinations
Families choose to bring their babies into the world at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center because they know we provide the highest-quality care, tailored to their individual needs, in a safe and supportive environment. That care for you and your baby's health doesn't end after delivery. To make sure your family stays healthy, we offer important health screens and vaccines to babies and their mothers.
Keeping Your Baby Healthy
For the sake of your baby's health, your newborn will receive several tests and vaccinations - some of them required by the state of California - following birth. All babies are screened, even if they look healthy, in order to check for a number of potentially serious conditions, some of which can be life-threatening. Discovering these conditions soon after birth can save a baby's life or help prevent serious problems, such as brain damage. Parents may refuse any of these tests for their babies. If they refuse the state-mandated Newborn Screening Test, they must submit a signed waiver to the state of California indicating they are aware of the risks.
Newborn Screens/Vaccines
To make sure your baby is healthy and stays healthy, The Birth Place, Westwood provides all newborns with a state-mandated Newborn Screening Test and several other recommended tests and vaccines before they leave the hospital. A single heel prick provides blood for two of the tests, while other painless tests check your baby's hearing and oxygen levels. Because newborns are vulnerable to infections, we also offer several vaccines to you and your newborn to protect you both against certain infectious diseases. Parents may refuse any of these tests or vaccines.
Tests for Your Baby
- California Newborn Screening Test
This is a blood test to check newborns for a number of metabolic abnormalities, including phenylketonuria (PKU), hypothyroidism, and cystic fibrosis. This state-required test is administered through a small prick to the heel. The blood sample is sent to a newborn screening lab for testing. If parents refuse to have their baby undergo the state-mandated Newborn Screening Test, they must submit a signed waiver to the state of California indicating they
are aware of the risks. - Newborn Hearing Screen
The state also requires newborns to undergo a hearing test that checks the brain's response to sound. For this test, a sensor is placed on the baby's head to monitor brain wave activity while the baby listens to a series of soft tones through a pair of headphones. This quick and painless test can be
done while the baby sleeps. - Pulse Oximetry
This safe and painless test helps to detect certain types of congenital heart disease that might otherwise not be discovered before leaving the hospital. Early detection improves treatment results and can prevent death. The test can also reveal other treatable conditions, such as pneumonia. The test measures the level of oxygen in the baby's blood, using a sensor that is gently wrapped around the baby's hand and foot for a few minutes. - Bilirubin Check
Bilirubin, a by-product of the recycling of red blood cells, is excreted by the liver into the bile, and leaves the body via the stool. Before birth, the bilirubin made by the fetus crosses the placenta and is excreted by the mother. After birth, it takes a few days for the baby to turn on the mechanisms in the liver that allow the baby to excrete bilirubin efficiently. During that time, the level of bilirubin in the baby's blood rises. This is a normal process, and occurs in all babies to some extent. If the bilirubin level is high enough, it produces a yellow-orange color of the skin, which is called jaundice. Jaundice in babies is very common, and normally does not cause any problems. However, in some babies, the bilirubin can rise to extremely high levels and cause permanent brain injury. Safe and effective treatment is available to stop the bilirubin from rising to a dangerous level if the problem is detected in time. The bilirubin check uses blood from the same heel prick performed for the newborn screening test, and it helps detect at an early stage the babies who are at risk for developing a dangerously high bilirubin level.
Vaccines for Baby and Mother
Infants are particularly vulnerable to infectious disease. Making sure you and your baby are immunized against disease is an important way
you can protect your newborn's health. UCLA offers babies and their mothers several vaccines to protect them against disease.
For Baby:
- Hepatitis B Vaccine (HepB)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all infants receive a Hepatitis B vaccine before leaving the hospital. Full immunity isn't achieved until babies have received additional booster shots. Starting the series at birth means the baby achieves full immunity sooner, and provides
an extra margin of safety for the baby. - Hepatitis B Immunoglobulin (HBIG)
This vaccine is given only to babies born to mothers who are carriers of Hepatitis B, that is, who test positive to the Hepatitis B surface antigen. For these babies, HBIG and the HepB vaccine will be administered within 12 hours of birth. This combination is highly effective in preventing transmission of Hepatitis B from mother to baby.
For Mom:
- Tdap
This single vaccination protects against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is sometimes deadly in babies. Because infants don't begin to receive this vaccine until they are two months old, Tdap is offered to mothers any time after their second trimester during their prenatal visit or as soon as possible after delivery, to help protect them from catching pertussis and transmitting it to the baby. We recommend that fathers and all other family members and caretakers who will have contact with the baby also receive this vaccine. - Flu Vaccine
Women in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy are at increased risk for hospitalization from influenza. Routine influenza vaccination is recommended for all women who are or will be pregnant during influenza season, which usually runs between early October and late March. Mothers who didn't receive this vaccine during prenatal care should receive it before leaving the hospital to protect themselves and to reduce the risk of transmission to the baby. It is recommended that fathers and all other family members and caretakers who will have contact with the baby also receive this vaccine. - Pneumococcal Vaccine
One shot of this vaccine can provide long-lasting immunity to Streptococcus pneumonia, a type of bacteria that can cause severe infections of the lungs, the blood or the lining of the brain. The CDC recommends the vaccine for people over 65 years and people under 65 years who smoke or suffer from chronic illnesses such as asthma or immune disorders. Because administration during pregnancy has not been studied, UCLA offers it to women with
asthma, diabetes and immune disorders after delivery.
