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Maternal Obesity and Morbid Obesity: the Risk for Birth Defects in the Offspring

Blomberg, Marie I. and Källén, Bengt LU (2010) In Birth Defects Research. Part A: Clinical and Molecular Teratology 88(1). p.35-40
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to assess, in a large data set from Swedish Medical Health Registries, whether maternal obesity and maternal morbid obesity were associated with an increased risk for various structural birth defects. METHODS: The study population consisted of 1,049,582 infants born in Sweden from January 1, 1995, through December 31, 2007, with known maternal weight and height data. Women were grouped in six categories of body mass index (BMI) according to World Health Organization classification. Infants with congenital birth defects were identified from three sources: the Swedish Medical Birth Registry, the Register of Birth Defects, and the National Patient Register. Maternal age, parity, smoking, and year of... (More)
BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to assess, in a large data set from Swedish Medical Health Registries, whether maternal obesity and maternal morbid obesity were associated with an increased risk for various structural birth defects. METHODS: The study population consisted of 1,049,582 infants born in Sweden from January 1, 1995, through December 31, 2007, with known maternal weight and height data. Women were grouped in six categories of body mass index (BMI) according to World Health Organization classification. Infants with congenital birth defects were identified from three sources: the Swedish Medical Birth Registry, the Register of Birth Defects, and the National Patient Register. Maternal age, parity, smoking, and year of birth were thought to be potential confounders and were included as covariates in the adjusted odds ratio analyses. RESULTS: Ten percent of the study population was obese. Morbid obesity (BMI >= 40) occurred in 0.7%. The prevalence of congenital malformations was 4.7%, and the prevalence of relatively severe malformations was 3.2%. Maternal prepregnancy morbid obesity was associated with neural tube defects OR 4.08 (95% CI 1.87-7.75), cardiac defects OR 1.49 (95% CI 1.24-1.80), and orofacial clefts OR 1.90 (95% CI 1.27-2.86). Maternal obesity (BMI >= 30) significantly increased the risk of hydrocephaly, anal atresia, hypospadias, cystic kidney, pes equinovarus, omphalocele, and diaphragmatic hernia. CONCLUSION: The risk for a morbidly obese pregnant woman to have an infant with a congenital birth defect is small, but for society the association is important in the light of the ongoing obesity epidemic. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 88:35-40, 2010. (C) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
neural tube defects, cardiac defects, obesity, birth defects, orofacial, clefts
in
Birth Defects Research. Part A: Clinical and Molecular Teratology
volume
88
issue
1
pages
35 - 40
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • wos:000273944500005
  • scopus:75749121115
  • pmid:19711433
ISSN
1542-0760
DOI
10.1002/bdra.20620
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
ef6a4427-92ca-479b-9fa2-2c36ba8fd910 (old id 1547370)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 10:12:08
date last changed
2022-03-12 03:06:45
@article{ef6a4427-92ca-479b-9fa2-2c36ba8fd910,
  abstract     = {{BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to assess, in a large data set from Swedish Medical Health Registries, whether maternal obesity and maternal morbid obesity were associated with an increased risk for various structural birth defects. METHODS: The study population consisted of 1,049,582 infants born in Sweden from January 1, 1995, through December 31, 2007, with known maternal weight and height data. Women were grouped in six categories of body mass index (BMI) according to World Health Organization classification. Infants with congenital birth defects were identified from three sources: the Swedish Medical Birth Registry, the Register of Birth Defects, and the National Patient Register. Maternal age, parity, smoking, and year of birth were thought to be potential confounders and were included as covariates in the adjusted odds ratio analyses. RESULTS: Ten percent of the study population was obese. Morbid obesity (BMI >= 40) occurred in 0.7%. The prevalence of congenital malformations was 4.7%, and the prevalence of relatively severe malformations was 3.2%. Maternal prepregnancy morbid obesity was associated with neural tube defects OR 4.08 (95% CI 1.87-7.75), cardiac defects OR 1.49 (95% CI 1.24-1.80), and orofacial clefts OR 1.90 (95% CI 1.27-2.86). Maternal obesity (BMI >= 30) significantly increased the risk of hydrocephaly, anal atresia, hypospadias, cystic kidney, pes equinovarus, omphalocele, and diaphragmatic hernia. CONCLUSION: The risk for a morbidly obese pregnant woman to have an infant with a congenital birth defect is small, but for society the association is important in the light of the ongoing obesity epidemic. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 88:35-40, 2010. (C) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.}},
  author       = {{Blomberg, Marie I. and Källén, Bengt}},
  issn         = {{1542-0760}},
  keywords     = {{neural tube defects; cardiac defects; obesity; birth defects; orofacial; clefts}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{35--40}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Birth Defects Research. Part A: Clinical and Molecular Teratology}},
  title        = {{Maternal Obesity and Morbid Obesity: the Risk for Birth Defects in the Offspring}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bdra.20620}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/bdra.20620}},
  volume       = {{88}},
  year         = {{2010}},
}