Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Aug;15(4):413-422.
doi: 10.1007/s12687-024-00714-x. Epub 2024 Jun 1.

Prevalence of congenital anomalies and prenatal diagnosis by birth institution (public vs. non-public): indicators of inequality in access to elective termination of pregnancy for fetal anomalies

Paloma Brun  1   2 , Boris Groisman  3 , María Paz Bidondo  3   4 , Pablo Barbero  3 , Marianela Trotta  3 , Rosa Liascovich  3
Affiliations

Prevalence of congenital anomalies and prenatal diagnosis by birth institution (public vs. non-public): indicators of inequality in access to elective termination of pregnancy for fetal anomalies

Paloma Brun et al. J Community Genet. 2024 Aug.

Abstract

Congenital anomalies (CA) encompass all morphological or functional alterations originating prenatally and present at birth. The prenatal diagnosis of these anomalies can significantly impact the overall health of the pregnant individual and may influence her decision regarding the continuation of the pregnancy. In contexts where safe pregnancy termination is not guaranteed by the state, it can lead to unsafe procedures with severe consequences. In our research, we analyzed epidemiological information on CA to develop potential indicators of inequity in access to safe abortion prior to the legalization of legal termination of pregnancy in Argentina. We included cases from 13 public hospitals and 9 non-public subsector hospitals, from the period 2013-2020. Two groups of specific CA were selected: 1) CA capable of being prenatally diagnosed, and 2) CA related to vascular disruptive events. 10/18 of the selected CA capable of being prenatally diagnosed had a significantly higher prevalence in public hospitals (anencephaly, encephalocele, spina bifida, microcephaly, hydrocephalus, holoprosencephaly, hydranencephaly, diaphragmatic hernia, gastroschisis, bilateral renal agenesis). Non public hospitals had higher prenatal detection. Birth prevalence of CA related with vascular disruptive events (limb reduction, Moebius syndrome, amniotic band sequence) were significantly higher in public hospitals. These results suggest disparities in access to prenatal diagnosis and safe abortion based on socioeconomic status. There was a significant gap in access to prenatal diagnosis for CA and possibly to safe elective abortion depending on the type of institution (public vs. non-public).

Keywords: Congenital anomalies; Health inequities; Prenatal diagnosis; Unsafe abortion.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Temporal trend of the prenatal diagnosis rate (PDR) of cases with congenital anomalies with potential prenatal diagnosis for each health subsector, Buenos Aires City, 2013–202
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Baldacci S, Santoro M, Coi A, Mezzasalma L, Bianchi F, Pierini A (2020) Lifestyle and sociodemographic risk factors for gastroschisis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Arch Dis Child 105(8):756–764 - PubMed
    1. Barbero P, Liascovich R, Tellechea AL, Piola A, Bidondo MP, Groisman B (2018) Inequidad en el diagnóstico prenatal y la interrupción del embarazo por anomalía fetal en Argentina. Arch Argent Pediatr 116(6):e813–e815
    1. Barbero P, Liascovich R, Valdez R, Moresco A (2011) Misoprostol teratogenicity: a prospective study in Argentina. Arch Argent Pediatría 109(3):226–231 - PubMed
    1. Bell C, Nevitt S, McKay VH, Fattah AY (2019) Will the real Moebius syndrome please stand up? A systematic review of the literature and statistical cluster analysis of clinical features. Am J Med Genet A 179(2):257–265 - PubMed
    1. Bidondo MP, Groisman B, Gili JA, Liascovich R, Barbero P, Pingray V (2015) Study on the prevalence and neonatal lethality in patients with selected congenital anomalies as per the data of the National Registry of Congenital Anomalies of Argentina. Arch Argent Pediatr 113(4):295–302 - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources