On the Relationship between Maternal Conditions during Pregnancy and Congenital Malformations

A Note on Time of Diagnosis in Mongolism

“…The acumen with which mongolism is diagnosed in the newborn at different centres and at different times may at least in part account for the range of incidence values reported among the newborn by different workers. 0ster (1953) reviews observed incidence values for mongolism among the newborn and shows an average of 1 : 601 for seven different investigations (Jenkins, 1933 ;Malpas, 1937 ;Keller, 1938 ;Beidlemann, 1945;Landtman, 1948;Parker, 1950;Hug, 1951) which closely agrees with his own findings of one mongo1 in about 600 live births in two Lying-in Departments in Denmark. Carter and MacCarthy (1953) obtained figures from twelve maternity hospitals and maternity units in London and the Home Counties for the number of mongols born over several years, and obtained a total incidence of 1 in every 666 mothers giving birth to live or stillborn children.…”

Place of Maternal Rubella in the Aetiology of Congenital Heart Disease

“…If so, these infections are elusive, for they have been searched for by many workers, without any of them being able to produce convincing evidence or indeed much more than isolated cases. Grbnvall and Selander (1948) thought one of their cases was due to maternal mumps; Landtman (1948) thought one was due to maternal influenza; and I have seen three where a viral disease seemed the probable cause (one due to maternal measles, one to maternal herpes zoster, and one to maternal vaccination during pregnancy). No one, however, has produced a striking series of cases, though it did not take long for Gregg's observations about maternal rubella to be confirmed in most parts of the world.…”

Maternal toxicity in humans and animals: Effects on fetal development and criteria for detection

“…A number of maternal factors have been reported to influence fetal development in humans. Landtman [5] cited several reports showing the existence of a close association between advanced maternal age and mongolian idiocy, anencephaly, spina bifida, and congenital hydrocephaly. Disturbances in maternal health such as diabetes, phenylketonuria, vaginal bleeding, and hyperthermia have been described to cause congenital malformations in numerous cases.…”