Frequency of Anencephaly and Its Associated Anomalies

Risk Factors of Anencephaly: A Case–Control Study in Dessie Town, North East Ethiopia

“…20,21 The incidence of anencephaly has been reported to show variation among different geographical regions. In this investigation, the incidence was 3.3/1000 pregnancies, which is slightly higher than the incidences reported in India, at 1.04 per 1000 births, 9 and Gorgan, Iran, at 1.31 per 1000 births, 10 and lower than the incidence reported in Kashmir, which was 10.2/1000 pregnancies, as observed by ultrasound. 7 The lower incidences reported in India may be due to early termination of diagnosed fetuses, which reduces the prevalence at birth, and changes in the level of ANC.…”

“…Spina bifida is the anomaly most commonly associated with anencephaly. 9,23 In the present study, spina bifida was also significantly associated with anencephaly (p<0.0001). The simultaneous presence of anencephaly and spina bifida appears to be due to a common structural abnormality of the neural tube, as suggested by Barry Borman et al 34 Although not statistically significant, polyhydramnios and oligohydramnios were also detected with anencephaly.…”

“…16 It has been reported that anencephaly occurs more frequently in female than in male fetuses. 9,22,23 Although not statistically significant, in the present study, 61% of the affected fetuses were females. The reason for a female predominance is not known, and may need further investigation.…”

“…6 Several studies have reported various risk factors linked to anencephaly, which include socioeconomic status, parental education, maternal age and occupation, smoking, alcoholism, maternal reproductive history, infection during early pregnancy, diabetes, obesity, and maternal use of caffeine and medications during early pregnancy. [7][8][9] The prevalence of anencephaly shows great variation among different countries, with 12 per 10,000 births in Iran, 10 10.4 per 10,000 births in China, 0.00-7.42 per 10,000 births in Rijeka, Croatia, 11 0.5-0.6 per 1000 live births in Singapore 12 and 0.5-6.5 per 1000 live births in India. 13,14 However, only a limited amount of research 15,16 has been conducted in Ethiopia.…”

17-Years-Old Teenager with Anencephaly

“…Anencephaly is described as the total or partial absence of the calvaria and brain tissue but still has the structures of the brainstem, cerebellum, and diencephalon [1]. Neural defects are generally distinguished by the failure of the neural tube to close during the early stages of embryonic development [2]. Babies born with anencephaly usually die within hours or a few days after birth [3].…”