First data from the new, unified database of the Hungarian case-control surveillance of congenital abnormalities

Abstract

The Hungarian Case-Control Surveillance of Congenital Abnormalities (HCCSCA) is one of the largest case-control data sets of CA-surveillance in the world. We unified all data collected in the HCCSCA between 1980 and 2009 into a new, validated single database that is now open for examination. The details of this unified database are given in this paper. The total number of cases and control newborns is 32,345 and 57,231, respectively. The overall prevalence of CAs recorded in the HCCSCA was 10.7/1000 live-births. Data available for each pregnancy are: CA(s), gender, birth year/month/date, birth weight, gestational age, area of mother’s living, maternal age, paternal age, birth order, mother’s and father’s qualification, employment status and type of employment, mother’s marital status, outcome of previous pregnancies, maternal diseases during pregnancy (according to pregnancy months), drug intake during pregnancy (according to pregnancy months), folic acid and/or pregnancy vitamin supplement intake (according to pregnancy months), mother’s smoking habits and alcohol consumption patterns. The most frequent anomalies detected were ventricular septal defect (2864), atrial septal defect (1895), polydactyly (1499), hypospadias (1083), and unilateral cleft lip ± palate (961). According to ICD-10, 701 diseases have been found to affect case mothers during pregnancy. Eight hundred and sixteen drugs were identified that had been taken by mothers during pregnancy. The authors are absolutely open for any scientific cooperation based on this database.