The changing incidence of neural tube defects in Scotland.
J Pediatr Surg
; 26(5): 516-8, 1991 May.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-2061799
ABSTRACT
The impact of neural tube defects on neonatal surgery has been declining in Scotland over the past two decades. The Scottish statistics for neural tube defects were studied from 1971 to 1988. The incidence of neural tube defects in Scotland has declined from 5.50 to 1.10 per 1,000 births over this period (3.00 to 0.58 per 1,000 births for spina bifida and 2.50 to 0.52 per 1,000 births for anencephaly). Antenatal maternal alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) screening was introduced to Scotland on a wide scale in 1976. The number of terminations for anencephaly peaked in 1980 (85), and for spina bifida in 1981 (70), and both have since declined. The Scottish birth rate has been about 67,000 per year over this period. The declining incidence of neural tube defects is not explained by the effect of antenatal screening and terminations alone. A downward trend was apparent before 1976, and although antenatal screening has had a considerable impact on anencephaly births (peak terminations 89% in 1983), it has had only a modest impact on spina bifida births (peak terminations 53% in 1984). We conclude that the natural decline in incidence of neural tube defects is the major factor in the observed decline in neonatal surgical admissions for these defects.
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Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Defectos del Tubo Neural
Tipo de estudio:
Incidence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Humans
/
Newborn
País/Región como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Pediatr Surg
Año:
1991
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Reino Unido