State Hygienic Laboratory, University of Iowa

The State Hygienic Laboratory is Iowa’s environmental and public health laboratory, serving all 99 counties by testing and tracking infectious diseases and illnesses; performing newborn and maternal screening; and monitoring the air, water and soil for environmental contaminants.

History

Since 1904, the State Hygienic Laboratory has been at the forefront of public health issues in Iowa. As the state’s public health and environmental laboratory, the Hygienic Laboratory serves all of Iowa’s 99 counties through disease detection, environmental monitoring, and newborn and maternal screening. 

In its early years, the Hygienic Laboratory tested for typhoid, diphtheria, rabies and tuberculosis. Today, the laboratory also quickly responds to other infectious disease threats, including mumps, whooping cough, salmonella and global threats such as HIV, tuberculosis, and  SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The lab’s mission has also expanded to address bioterrorism and chemical terrorism response and readiness. 

An Environmental Protection Agency-certified facility, the Hygienic Laboratory conducts testing of drinking water as mandated by the Safe Drinking Water Act. The staff also works with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to monitor waterways throughout the state for contaminants and to assess air quality in real-time and through lab testing. 

The Hygienic Laboratory provides potentially life-saving newborn screening for every child born in Iowa as the laboratory designated by the Iowa Department of Public Health through the Center for Congenital and Inherited Disorders. This highly specialized screening also is provided for babies born in Alaska, North Dakota and South Dakota.