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. 2015 Jan 10:12:3.
doi: 10.1186/1742-4755-12-3.

Prevalence of birth defects in an Arctic Russian setting from 1973 to 2011: a register-based study

Vitaly A Postoev  1 , Evert Nieboer, Andrej M Grjibovski, Jon Øyvind Odland
Affiliations

Prevalence of birth defects in an Arctic Russian setting from 1973 to 2011: a register-based study

Vitaly A Postoev et al. Reprod Health. .

Abstract

Background: Birth defects (BD) constitute an important public health issue as they are the main cause of infant death. Their prevalence in Europe for 2008-2012 was 25.6 per 1000 newborns. To date, there are no population-based studies for the Russian Federation. The aim of the present study is to estimate the prevalence of BD, its forms, and changes over time in the Russian Arctic city of Monchegorsk (Murmansk County) for the period 1973-2011.

Methods: The Murmansk County Birth Register and the Kola Birth Register were the primary sources of information, covering 30448 pregnancy outcomes in Monchegorsk (Murmansk County, Russia) during the study period.

Results: The total perinatal prevalence of BD was 36.1/1000 live births (LB) and stillborn (SB) (95% CI = 34.0-38.2). After exclusions of minor malformations according to the European Surveillance of Congenital Anomalies guidelines, it decreased to 26.5/1000 LB plus SB (95% CI = 24.6-28.3). The perinatal prevalence of BD that are obligatory to report in Russia was 7.3/1000 LB plus SB (95% CI = 6.4-8.3). There was a significant positive time-trend in total perinatal prevalence of birth defects across the study period (p < 0.001 for trend). Prevalence of all BD increased from 23.5/1000 to 46.3/1000 (LB plus SB), while that excluding minor defects rose from 17.7/1000 to 35.7/1000 (LB plus SB). The most prevalent group of defects was malformations of the musculoskeletal system, which represented 35.4% of all BD. The most prominent increase was observed for the urinary system, rising from 0.2/1000 to 19.1/1000 (LB plus SB).

Conclusions: The observed perinatal prevalence of BD in Monchegorsk increased two-fold during the 38-year study period. Further investigations to identify the underlying bases for the observed progressive growth in BD are recommended.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Map of Murmansk County with surrounding areas (with permission of http://www.briard.ru ).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Prevalence of all birth defects and the most prevalent groups of defects in Monchegorsk, stratified by calendar periods.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. European Surveillance of Congenital Anomalies (EUROCAT): Prevalence Tables 2008–2012. . Accessed 21 Feb 2014 http://www.eurocat-network.eu/accessprevalencedata/prevalencetables
    1. Kobrinskaya BA, Demikova NS. Principles of establishing of birth defects’ monitoring in Russian Federation (Principy organizatcii monitoringa vrozhdennyh porokov razvitiya i ego realizaciya v Rossiyskoy Federacii – in Russian) Russian Bulletin of Perinatology and Pediatrics. 2001;4:55–60.
    1. Sixty Third World Health Assembly Report: Birth Defects. A63/10; 1 April, 2010. . Accessed 10 Mar 2014 http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA63/A63_10-en.pdf?ua=1
    1. Korsunskiy AA. Infant mortality in Russian Federation. The ways for decreasing (report at the Board of Ministry of Health of Russian Federation 09.01.2001) (Mladencheskaja smertnost v Rossijskoy Federacii. Puti snizheniya (izlozhenie doklada na kollegii Ministerstva Zdravoohranenija Rossijskoy Federacii 09.01.2001 – in Russian) Pediatry. 2001;2:5.
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