Skip Navigation
Genetics Home Reference: your guide to understanding genetic conditions About   Site Map   Contact Us
 
Home A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine®
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q-R | S | T | U | V | W | X-Y | Z

Screening

Synonym(s)

  • genetic screening

Definition(s)

Testing designed to identify individuals in a given population who are at higher risk of having or developing a particular disorder, or carrying a gene for a particular disorder

Click here for More information from GeneTestsThis link leads to a site outside Genetics Home Reference.

Definition from: GeneTestsThis link leads to a site outside Genetics Home Reference. from the University of Washington and Children's Health System, Seattle

Testing groups of individuals to identify defective genes capable of causing hereditary conditions.

Definition from: Office of Rare DiseasesThis link leads to a site outside Genetics Home Reference. at the National Institutes of Health

Testing a group of people to identify individuals at high risk of having or passing on a specific genetic disorder.

Definition from: Human Genome Project InformationThis link leads to a site outside Genetics Home Reference. at the U.S. Department of Energy

Genetic screening is the process of testing a population for a genetic disease in order to identify a subgroup of people that either have the disease or the potential to pass it on to their offspring.

Definition from: Talking Glossary of Genetic TermsThis link leads to a site outside Genetics Home Reference. from the National Human Genome Research Institute

Related discussion in the Handbook

See also Understanding Medical Terminology.

 
Published: November 20, 2009