Under Reporting - Birth defects in babies rise by 50%

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> New ScientistBirth defects in babies rise by 50%

> NewScientist.com news service

>

> - http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99992056 -

>

> The number of babies born in Britain with certain birth defects has risen

by

> 50 percent in the past five years, according to research by Birth Defects

> Foundation, a medical charity. The rise is probably due to environmental

> factors, say scientists.

> Incidences of cleft lip or palate rose from nearly six cases per 10,000

> births in 1995 to over nine in 1999, says the charity.

> Hypospadias, where the opening to the penis is underneath the shaft, has

> risen from 7.5 cases per 10,000 to 8.5 and gastroschisis, where the

> intestines protrude through the abdominal wall, has risen from 1.3 per

> 10,000 to 1.9, BDF says.

> Michael Patton, medical director of BDF and head of medical genetics at St

> George's Hospital in London, speculates that illegal drug use may be to

> blame for one of the defects: " Gastroschisis appears to be much more

common

> in babies born of teenage mothers in urban areas and could be due to

> recreational drug use during pregnancy, although research needs to be

> carried out to see if this is the case. "

>

> Rise and fall

>

> Hypospadias may be linked to the increase of oestrogen-mimicking chemicals

> in the environment, says Iuen Hughes, professor of paediatrics at

Cambridge

> University. He is carrying out research funded by BDF into the molecular

> mechanism of the disorder.

> " The positioning of the urethra in the developing penis is heavily

dependent

> on coordinated androgen action. Our cellular model shows that

oestrogen-like

> chemicals in the environment interfere with the action of the fetal

androgen

> receptors, causing abnormality, " Hughes told New Scientist.

> Other birth defects are declining. Incidences of spina bifida has fallen

by

> two-thirds, probably due to women boosting their levels of folic acid in

> early pregnancy.

> The increasing age of first-time mothers was not thought to be significant

> in neonatal defects because it is linked to increased risk of chromosomal

> abnormalities such as Down's syndrome. These can be picked up early on in

> pregnancy and so often lead to termination.

>

> Under-reporting

>

> Patton estimates one in 16 of all babies born have some abnormality

ranging

> from fatal heart defects, deafness or learning difficulties to minor

> conditions such as a heart murmur or extra tissue growth on a hand - like

a

> finger - that can be easily removed with surgery.

> The BDF figures are six times higher than the official UK government's

> statistics, although a spokesman from the Office of National Statistics

> said: " It has long been recognised that there is under-reporting. "

> Patton told New Scientist: " Our figures for birth defects are higher

because

> we do not just look at severe physical defects present at birth but

include

> all defects. " The BDF announced the new figures at the start of their

> campaign to introduce a five-point plan to having a healthy baby.

>

> Gaia Vince

>

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