Incidence of Neural Tube Defects in Al-Kadhimyia Teaching Hospital

Neural Tube Defects (NTDs) including spina bifida ,anencephaly and encephalocele are the second most prevalent congenital anomaly , second only to cardiac malformations, and they are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality with multifactorial etiology ,and with great variation in their incidence in different population . Objective To estimate the incidence of Neural Tube Defects and to identify some of the possible risk factors for their occurrence. Methods A prospective study was carried out in the maternity ward at Al-Kadhimyia Teaching Hospital from the first of August 2009 to the end of july 2011. All live births newborns were included in the study and assessed for the presence of Neural tube defects .The demographic characteristics and general information of the neonates and their mothers were collected by direct interview of mothers using special questionnaire . Result During the study period ,the total number of live births was 18344, of these ,62 had Neural tube defects giving an overall incidence of 3.37 /1000 live births.The rate of Neural Tube Defects was higher in males than females (p-0.01 ).Spina bifida was the most common type among the affected cases (92 % ) and the corresponding incidence was 3.2/1000 live births .The birth incidence was higher in January –June period (p- 0.0001 ) .Residence in rural areas (p-0.0001 ) , consanguinity marriage (P-value 0.001 ),low maternal education (P-value 0.005 ),multiparity unbooked mothers (p-0.006) and negative history of folate consumption (p-0.001 )are important risk factors for Neural tube defects )p-001) . Conclusion The incidence of Neural Tube Defects is high in comparision with developed and some developing countries .Imlementation of strategies to decrease the rate of these anomalies would be beneficial to prevent them Fortification and supplementation of folic acid and prenatal screening could decrease Neural tube defects and other devastating conditions .