[Anencephaly in underdeveloped countries. Apropos of 22 cases in Kinshasa, Záĭre]

There were 22 cases of anencephaly found out of 70,450 live births registered between 1973 and 1985 in the University Teaching Hospital of Kinshasa. The very low frequency of this abnormality (31 p. 100,000) is in contrast with that published for industrialised countries (180 to 590 p. 100,000). Is this difference due to feeding habits or to racial and geographical influences? Without either routine ultrasound or alphafetoprotein estimations and acetylcholinesterase levels, the diagnosis of anencephaly could only be made by X-raying cases with hydramnios (64%), and in the remaining cases on delivery. The pregnancies lasted on an average 36.8 weeks. All the deliveries were normal but only 23% of the babies were born alive and all of these died within the first hour of life. There was no case of postmaturity. In fact, 50% of the births were premature.