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Prevalence of Congenital Anomalies in the Japan Environment and Children's Study

Hidetoshi Mezawa1, Ai Tomotaki1, Kiwako Yamamoto-Hanada1

  • 1Medical Support Center for the Japan Environment and Children's Study, National Center for Child Health and Development.

Journal of Epidemiology
|September 26, 2018
PubMed

Insights

This study estimated congenital anomaly (CA) prevalence in Japan using JECS data, finding reliable prevalence data for major CAs. The validity of CA classification within JECS was also evaluated.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Epidemiology
  • Public Health
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Congenital anomalies (CAs) pose a significant public health concern.
  • Understanding CA prevalence is crucial for targeted interventions and resource allocation.
  • The Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS) provides a valuable dataset for investigating CA epidemiology in Japan.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To estimate the prevalence of major congenital anomalies (CAs) in infants in Japan.
  • To assess the validity and reliability of CA classification within the JECS cohort.
  • To provide robust epidemiological data on CAs for environmental exposure research.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of medical records from 101,825 infants across 15 JECS regional centers.
  • Focus on 61 specific CAs with known environmental exposure associations.
  • Prevalence calculation stratified by four reporting patterns and validation through retrospective re-evaluation of 179 cases.

Main Results:

  • Prevalence rates per 10,000 pregnancies were reported for major CAs including myelomeningocele/spina bifida, cleft palate, cleft lip, congenital heart disease, and Down's syndrome.
  • The accuracy of CA diagnoses in the JECS re-evaluation subsample ranged from 90.5% to 97.8% across different reporting patterns.
  • Reliable prevalence data for major CAs were generated from the JECS dataset.

Conclusions:

  • The JECS cohort provides a reliable source for estimating the prevalence of major congenital anomalies in Japan.
  • The CA classification system within JECS demonstrates good validity.
  • These findings support the use of JECS data for future research on environmental factors and CAs.
Abstract

Keywords:
JECSJapan Environment and Children’s Studybirth cohortcongenital anomaliesprevalence

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