Abstract
Background Neural tube defects (NTDs) are birth defects that results from failure of the neural tube to develop properly during early pregnancy.Methods We studied the prevalence of neural tube defects in newborns admitted to the NICU in Soba University and Omdurman Maternity hospitals, during the period 1st August 2014 to 31st July 2015. A cross-sectional hospital based study, involved all newborns with any type of neural tube defect admitted to the NICU in the study area during the study period. Data was collected using a questionnaire reviewing the medical, social history and clinical examination.ResultsOut of the 36,785 delivered newborns during the study period, the prevalence of NTDs was 2.8:1000. Females were 56 (54.4%) predominated males 47 (45.6%). History of neural tube defects was found in 11 (10.7%) of the affected newborns siblings. Sixty-eight (66%) of the studied mothers received folic acid during pregnancy with the current child, of those who received folic acid 66 (97.1%) started folic acid after conception, 36 (54.5%) in the first trimester and 39 (57.4%) had no regular intake of the folic acid. The types of NTDs include myelomeningocele 49 (47.6%), anencephaly 18 (17.5%), encephalocele 14 (13.6%), myelomeningocele and hydrocephalus 11 (10.7%) and meningocele 8 (7.8%).ConclusionThe prevalence of neural tube defects is 2.8:1000. Myelomeningocele is the commonest encountered NTD. The use of preconception folic acid needs to be advocated.
Highlights
Neural tube defects (NTDs) are birth defects that results from failure of the neural tube to develop properly during early pregnancy
The total number of the infants delivered during the study period was 36,785, 103 of them were newborns with NTDs, the prevalence of NTDs = 103/36,785 = 2.8: 1000
The types of NTDs revealed in the study were myelomeningocele 49 (47.7%), anencephaly 18 (17.5%), encephalocele 14 (13.6%), myelomeningocele and hydrocephalus 11 (10.7%) and meningocele 8 (7.8%) (Table 2)
Summary
Neural tube defects (NTDs) are birth defects that results from failure of the neural tube to develop properly during early pregnancy. The main cause of NTDs are abnormalities that occur during neurulation, which should be complete by 4 weeks postconception [8]. These serious birth defects are to a large extent preventable by adequate intake of folic acid by. Omer et al BMC Res Notes (2016) 9:495 women of the reproductive age and several studies reported that preconceptional supplementation of folic acid can prevent up to 50% of the cases of NTDs as well as cardiac and craniofacial abnormalities [9,10,11]. Despite wide availability of its natural food sources (green leafy vegetables, bananas, legumes), folic acid deficiency among women of reproductive age is common worldwide [12, 13] usually as a result of low-dietary intake or cooking losses [14]
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