Background Despite vaccine and antiviral treatment availability, hepatitis B virus (HBV) continues to circulate among pregnant women in Iraq. HBV spread is due to many factors. This study evaluated HBV prevalence among pregnant women and Syrian refugees residing in Zakho city, Iraq, and identified risk factors associated with infection. Materials and methods Demographic data were collected from 2,054 pregnant women via a questionnaire assessing risk factors associated with HBV infection. Blood samples were collected for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and were screened using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results Tests revealed that 1.1% of pregnant women in Zakho and 11.3% of Syrian refugees (p = 0.001) were positive for HBsAg. The average age of HBsAg-positive patients was 31.4286 ± 6.6746 years (p = 0.002). Average rates of parity and abortion in HBV-infected subjects were 3.5 ± 2.6874 and 0.1785 ± 0.5479, respectively (p = 0.044 and 0.012, respectively). The following were identified as associated risk factors for HBV infection: nationality, (Zakho versus the city centre), tattoos, and polygamy (p = 0.001, 0.03, 0.007, and 0.001, respectively). No significant associations between HBV prevalence and blood transfusion, prior injection history, dental procedures, or surgical procedures were found. Conclusion The prevalence of HBV infection among Syrian refugees was higher than that of indigenous participants. Several risk factors were significantly associated with HBV positivity, which may facilitate effective preventive program implementation and decrease mother-to-child transmission risk. This will likely reduce infant and childhood HBV chronicity, and mortality rates.

Introduction: Documented articles have determined that viral illness during early pregnancy and several antiviral drugs are associated with an increased risk for neurodevelopmental congenital anomalies of the newborn. These include NTDs, the most common and severe malformations of spinal cord (spina bifida) or brain (anencephaly, encephalocele, hydrocephalus), which develop within 6 weeks of pregnancy with an incidence of one in 1000 neonates worldwide and they cause lifelong neurological complications. The aim of this study is to describe the clinical characteristics of simultaneous cases of COVID 19 in pregnant women with neural tube defects in their newborns. Patient and methods: This is descriptive study case series including cases of Neural Tube Defects when their mothers were affected with COVID-19 infection that was reported in Zahko Maternity hospital. Those in the labour unit were enrolled in this study and the cases was collected during the period 1st January 2020 and 1st January 2022. The information collected through direct interview with the mothers through questionnaire includes the information about the socio-demographic, obstetrical history and history of COVID 19 infection, severity presence of fever and type of medication received. Results: Regarding the general and obstetrical history of the patients, the current study revealed that the affected age group of mothers was as follows; 28 (41.2%) of them (26-30 years), and 15 (22.1) of them (> 35). Anemia and fever in the 1st trimester were found in 54 (79.4%) of them. Alcohol intake was reported in 2 (2.9%) of them, consanguinity in 19 (27.9%) of them, female newborns constituted 38 (55.9%), gestational diabetes mellitus in 1 (1.5%), diabetes mellitus in 6 (8.8%), and hypertension in 5 (7.4%). The drugs received during pregnancy, were as follows; antibiotics; all patients 100%; antihypertensive drugs received by 14 (20.6%), antipyretics 29 (42.6%), antacids 21 (30.9%), and antifungals 16 (23.5%). Conclusions: the COVID19 infection may be blamed as a cause of NTDs, and further research about the pathophysiology is needed. Keywords: Concomitant COVID 19 & Neural Tube Defects, Case Series of COVID 19 & Neural Tube Defects