Birth Defects Prevention

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Birth Defects Prevention

• Presentation By
• Shaida Kalbasi
• Graduate Intern
• Graduate Student of Public Health

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Birth Defects in the U.S.

• Approximately 120,000 babies are born in the
  United States each year with birth defects
• The American College of Obstetricians and
  Gynecologists (ACOG) states that three in every
  one hundred babies born in the U.S. have a major
  birth defect

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Birth Defects

• Affects how the body looks, functions, or both
• Forms while the baby is developing in the womb
• Most happen during the first 3 months of
  pregnancy and are found within the first year of
  life
• Can be detected before, during, or after birth

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Birth Defects

• Can vary from mild to severe
• Lead to mental or physical disabilities - some of
  which are fatal
• Account for more than 20 of infant deaths
• Substantially contribute to life-long
  disabilities

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Cause of Birth Defects

• For the majority of cases the cause is unknown
• May be related to
• Occupational hazards
• Dietary factors
• Medications
• Personal habits
• Environmental exposures
• Diseases
• Genetics

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Common Types of Birth Defects

• Cleft lip
• Clubfoot
• Heart Defects
• Hearing Loss
• Cleft Palate
• Hypospadia
• Down Syndrome

• Anencephaly
• Biliary atresia
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
• Alcohol-related Neurodevelopmental Disorder
• Alcohol-related Birth Defects (ARBD)

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Most Common Birth Defects
Cleft Palate
Cleft Lip
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Prevention Risks of Birth Defects

• Dietary changes may be helpful in prevention
• Taking folic acid (400mg/day) reduces the risk of
  some birth defects
• Smoking, drinking alcohol, and certain drugs
  taken while pregnant increase the risk of a child
  developing a birth defect
• Excessive exposure to high frequency noise may
  have damaging effects on a developing fetus

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Risks of Birth Defects

• Alcohol leads to a variety of disorders
  including
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
• Alcohol-related Neurodevelopmental Disorder
  (ARND)
• Alcohol-related Birth Defects (ARBD)
• All medications should be reviewed by a
  healthcare provider before use while pregnant
• Over-the-counter
• Prescription
• Nutritional or herbal supplements

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Risk of Down Syndrome

• Women over age 35 have a greater risk of having a
  child born with Down Syndrome

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Detection of Birth Defects

• Some birth defects are visible but others require
  tests
• i.e. cleft lip and clubfoot are visible defects
  but heart defects and hearing loss require
  testing
• Tests include
• X-rays
• Computed tomography scans (CT scans or CAT
  scans)
• Hearing tests

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Minority Populations Birth Defects

• Birth defects are a major contributor to infant
  mortality among all racial/ethnic groups
• Certain birth defects have higher rates of
  occurrence among minority populations

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Minority Populations Birth Defects

• Hispanic women are more likely to have a baby
  with anencephaly, a fatal condition
• Hispanic women are also more likely to have a
  child with an ear defect
• African American babies are more likely have
  biliary atresia, a defect of the digestive tract

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Minority Populations Birth Defects

• Infant mortality rates due to birth defects are
  high among minority infants of low birth weight
• Mortalities due to birth defects
• 52 among Asian populations
• 29 among Black populations

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Minority Populations Birth Defects

• Health care access accounts for some of the
  disparities
• Environmental and occupational exposures may also
  contribute to disparities
• Minority and poorer communities are more likely
  to live in polluted environments and work in
  hazardous occupations

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Sex Prevalence of Birth Defects

• Male infants are at greater risk for birth
  defects than females
• i.e. defects of the sex organs, urinary tract,
  and gastrointestinal tract
• Females are at greater risk for nervous system
  and endocrine system defects

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Socioeconomic Status Birth Defects

• Studies suggest that there is a strong
  association between low socioeconomic status and
  prevalence of low birth weight
• There is also association between some specific
  birth defects (such as heart defects) and low
  socioeconomic status

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References

• http//www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1046
  /j.1365-3016.2003.00498.x/abs/
• http//aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/155
  /10/932
• http//cat.inist.fr/?aModeleafficheNcpsidt14059
  113
• http//www.umm.edu/ency/article/002092.htm
• http//www.niehs.nih.gov/oc/factsheets/disparity/h
  ome.htm
• http//www.fertility-facts.com/Pregnancy/birthdefe
  ctprevention.htm
• http//www.kidshealth.org/parent/system/ill/birth_
  defects.html
• http//www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/bd/faq1.htm
• http//search.msn.com/images/results.aspx?qcleft
  palateFORMMSNHmkten-US

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Resources

• The National Institute of Health has several
  resources available
• http//nih.org/
• Center for the Study of Health Disparities
• 112 Harrington Tower, TAMU
• 979-845-3502