title: A population-based case-control teratologic study of oral oxytetracycline treatment during pregnancy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study human teratogenic potential of oral oxytetracycline treatment during pregnancy.
  
  
  METHODS
  The pair analysis of cases with congenital abnormalities and matched healthy controls in the large population-based dataset of the Hungarian Case-Control Surveillance of Congenital Abnormalities, 1980-1996.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 38,151 pregnant women who had babies without any defects in the study period (control group), 214 (0.6%) were treated with oral oxytetracycline. Of 22,865 pregnant women who had offspring with congenital abnormalities, 216 (0.9%) were treated with oxytetracycline (OR with 95%: 1.7, 1.4-2.0). Different approaches in the study showed a higher rate of medically documented oxytetracycline treatment in the second months of gestation in neural-tube defects (OR with 95%: 9.7, 2.0-47.1), cleft palate (17.2, 3.5-83.5) and multiple congenital abnormalities (12.9, 3.8-44.3) including mainly the combination of neural-tube defects and cardiovascular malformations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Treatment with oxytetracycline during the second months of pregnancy presents a teratogenic risk to the fetus.
authors.affiliation: WHO Collaborating Centre for the Community Control of Hereditary Diseases, Department of Human Genetics and Teratology, National Centre for Epidemiology, Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Czeizel
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rockenbauer
mesh_terms: D000014:Abnormalities, Drug-Induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D006814:Hungary; D007021:Hypospadias / Q000453:epidemiology; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000453:epidemiology; D010118:Oxytetracycline / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D010118:Oxytetracycline