ABSTRACT
Screening and surveillance in childhood are important both in following up difficulties identified during the neonatal period and in diagnosing disorders for which effective treatment is available. This should be a seamless extension from antenatal and neonatal care, and it provides the opportunity to establish a basis for good health in later life with appropriate advice on healthy eating, home and road safety and immunisation. All reasonable steps should be taken at this early stage to promote good health and prevent illness. A significant number of serious visual disorders are likely to be found at the routine neonatal examination, and the available evidence suggests that formal visual screening of every infant in the first year of life is not justified. The boundaries between childhood and adolescence are blurring, with many children appearing to mature earlier, physically if not emotionally. Many issues are relevant, including stress, depression, abuse, bullying and violence, contraception, sexual health and substance misuse.
