Sociodemographic Factors and Consanguinity in Intellectual Disability: A Pilot Study

Arab populations have a long tradition of consanguinity. In Morocco, consanguineous marriages are culturally favored. In this study, we assessed the effect of consanguinity on the occurrence of intellectual disability (ID) and investigated its association to education level and professional status in a series of Moroccan families.

In total, 186 patients with ID were included in this study. Data were processed and analyzed with the IBM SPSS.

The rate of consanguinity among the parents of children with ID was 34.95 percent. Marriages between first cousins accounted for 24.19 percent of consanguineous unions (FI=0.02). In the general population (n=300), 27.3 percent of marriages were consanguineous, with 22.66 percent being marriages between first cousins. Marriage between first cousins was the most common type of consanguineous marriage. The illiteracy rate was greater among women, compared to men (56.9% vs. 37.87%). The majority of mothers (81.11%) were housewives. A predominance of low professional status was observed among the men (62.22% of population, 22.7%). There was a high correlation between consanguinity and ID. The association between education level, professional status, and consanguinity rate in ID was not statistically significant (p>0.05).

The consanguinity rate in Moroccan families remains important. More strategies and efforts must be taken and reinforced for a better understanding and awareness of consanguinity risks to significantly reduce this practice.