title: Incidence of neural tube defects among neonates at King Hussein Medical Centre, Jordan.
abstract: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are important factors in fetal and infant mortality. There have been no studies on the incidence of NTDs in Jordan. A one-year prospective study was therefore conducted in King Hussein Medical Centre neonatal unit (April 2002-April 2003) to determine the incidence of NTDs among Jordanian neonates. All liveborn babies, both term and preterm, were assessed for NTDs. Mothers of babies with NTDs were interviewed postnatally regarding antenatal care and family history of NTDs. Of 5088 live births, 33 had NTDs, giving an incidence of 6.5/1000 live births. None of the women with affected babies had a history of NTDs and all had received antenatal care, but none had taken folate supplementation. The majority of the women had not had a diagnosis before the birth, despite having had ultrasound scans throughout their pregnancies.
authors.affiliation: Neonatal Unit, Paediatric Department, King Hussein Medical Centre, Amman, Jordan. h_aqrabawi@hotmail.com
authors.forename: H E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Aqrabawi
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005865:Gestational Age; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007226:Infant Mortality; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007597:Jordan / Q000453:epidemiology; D050498:Live Birth; D008487:Medical History Taking; D009035:Mothers / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D010298:Parity; D010375:Pedigree; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017584:Reproductive History; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid