Canadians are eyeing moves to these cities for more affordable housing
Faced with elevated housing prices, half of Canadians in the country's largest cities are considering moving to places with more affordable housing.
Roughly one in 200 babies born in Canada today will have a virus that can lead to hearing loss, intellectual disability or vision loss.
Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) is “in the family of the herpes group of viruses,” Dr. Ari Bitnun, pediatric infectious disease specialist at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, told CTV National News.
“There’s a whole bunch of them, so it’s related to the virus that causes mono and cold sores. It is very common.”
However, it’s only Saskatchewan and Ontario that are screening newborns for CMV.
The gap in screening has led Rob Tétrault, co-founder of CMV Canada and the father of a boy born with CMV, to push for testing in all provinces.
“We have sick kids and we are choosing not to identify them. We are choosing not to treat them,” he says.
The father from Winnipeg is hoping to increase awareness by running across the province on a 12-day marathon from the Saskatchewan border to the Ontario border, bridging the “screening gap,” he says.
He’s asking people to sign up, donate and run with him to bring awareness. Run with Rob for CMV Canada is set to kick-off May 12.
“It’s the number one cause of infant disability, the number one cause of non-genetic hearing loss. It’s way more common than people are aware of and nobody has ever heard about it.”
In Manitoba, where targeted screening is done on some infants, the provincial government says it is looking at the impact of universal screening for all newborns in other provinces.
A government spokesperson said in a statement, “Manitoba Public Health is committed to a targeted congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) screening process and is following the impact of universal cCMV screening programs in other jurisdictions.”
PARENTS ‘SURPRISED’ AFTER HEARING ABOUT CMV: EXPERT
CMV is passed via bodily fluids like saliva, urine, blood, tears, semen, and breast milk.
“If you catch CMV infection during pregnancy and it’s transmitted to the fetus, it can have significant consequences for the fetus,” Bitnun says.
Bitnun says mothers with toddlers in daycares may be more susceptible to CMV. His advice is to wash your hands regularly, especially after diaper changes, and to not share food or utensils with a toddler.
Antivirals can be used to treat infection, and while vaccine trials are being done, the work is ongoing.
“Most mothers that come to me with a baby that has congenital CMV are surprised that they’ve never heard of CMV,” Bitnun says. “And I think we’ve done a terrible job of advocacy in that sense, as there are simple interventions that will reduce a woman’s risk of acquiring CMV in pregnancy.”
As part of screenings, newborns are given a heel-prick test, allowing doctors to collect a small amount of blood. It is checked for genetic, metabolic, blood or hormone-related conditions which may not be apparent at birth, but could cause serious health problems.
Ontario included CMV in its newborn screening program in 2019 and in 2022, Saskatchewan became the second province to do so.
Francesca Jones was the first baby diagnosed under a CMV pilot screening program in in 2018. She was born deaf and received cochlear implants at six months old. She is now four-and-a-half years old, healthy and happy.
Her early diagnosis allowed doctors to help her quickly get treatment for hearing loss, which her father, William Jones, says he is thankful for.
“You’re catching kids early who may have severe disabilities,” Jones says. “If doctors can intervene with certain therapies, it can have a huge effect on that person’s life for the long term. I think it’s just a no-brainer.”
Faced with elevated housing prices, half of Canadians in the country's largest cities are considering moving to places with more affordable housing.
Liberal parliamentarians are criticizing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over a new video in which he promotes the idea that some Canadians are 'fleeing' Canada to live in Nicaragua because they can't afford a house in this country.
A skull was found along a backroad near St. John's more than 20 years ago. Now, police have finally identified the victim of the homicide.
Car manufacturer Nissan has issued a do-not-drive warning for some older vehicles equipped with Takata airbag inflators, due to the risk of explosion during a crash.
An infant has died and three others, including another child, were taken to hospital following an ATV crash in Forties, N.S., on Monday.
Canadian figure-skating icon Tessa Virtue is expecting her first child, she revealed via social media Tuesday.
McDonald’s is fighting back against viral tweets and media reports that it says have exaggerated its price increases.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's housing bill has been defeated in the House of Commons with the Liberals, New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois voting against the legislation.
A British Columbia man will be extradited to the United States, where he faces a possible life sentence if convicted of charges that he repeatedly sexually assaulted his stepdaughter, after losing his appeal of the extradition order Tuesday.
The president of Covered Bridge Chips in New Brunswick is hoping to have his factory rebuilt for late 2025 following a devastating fire last year.
Students and staff at Winnipeg’s Westwood Collegiate had a unique problem to solve this month; how do you lead ducks to water from the school’s courtyard when 12 of them can’t fly yet?
Debby Lorinczy remembers her father as an amazing person and as a man who also made an amazing discovery.
Abigail Strate is a member of the Canadian national ski jumping team and an Olympic bronze medallist. She's also a certified beekeeper.
It's been a long time coming, but one Oilers superfan is hoping this will be the year he gets to touch up his massive Stanley Cup back tattoo.
A man's daring rescue of a newborn wild foal that was trapped after falling down a steep embankment was caught on video over the weekend.
A Winnipeg pinball wizard is heading to the granddaddy of them all – the IFPA World Pinball Championship.
It’s the chance of a lifetime for a group of Ottawa athletes who are getting ready to represent Team Canada at the World Junior Ultimate championships in the United Kingdom.
Parishioners at Holy Trinity Anglican Church are praying for a monetary miracle, as their historic place of worship could collapse at any moment.