title: Consanguinity and birth defects in the jerusalem perinatal study cohort.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  While parental consanguinity is known to increase the risk of birth defects in offspring, it is hard to quantify this risk in populations where consanguinity is prevalent.
  
  
  METHODS
  To support ongoing studies of cancer and of psychiatric disease, we studied relationships of consanguinity to 1,053 major birth defects in 29,815 offspring, born in 1964-1976. To adjust for confounding variables (geographic origin, social class and hospital), we constructed logistic regression models, using GEE to take into account correlations between sibs. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence limits were estimated in comparison to a reference group of offspring with grandfathers born in different countries.
  
  
  RESULTS
  With 10.1% of offspring having consanguineous parents, the adjusted OR for major birth defect was 1.41 (1.12-1.74). Offspring of marriages between uncles-nieces, first cousins and more distant relatives showed adjusted ORs of 2.36 (0.98-5.68), 1.59 (1.22-2.07) and 1.20 (0.89-1.59) respectively. For descendents of grandfathers born in the same country, but not known to be related, the OR was 1.05 (0.91-1.21); these showed increased risk associated with ancestries in Western Asia (1.27, 1.04-1.55, p < 0.02) or Europe (1.13, 0.79-1.80).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A strong association of consanguinity with poverty and low education points to the need to avoid exposure to environmental hazards in these families.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10017, USA. susan.harlap@gmail.com
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Harlap
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kleinhaus
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Perrin
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Calderon-Margalit
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Paltiel
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Deutsch
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Manor
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tiram
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yanetz
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Friedlander
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000209:etiology*; D003241:Consanguinity; D007557:Israel; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012044:Regression Analysis