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Updated: Sep 11, 2025

Analysis of Congenital Heart Defects in Mouse Embryos Using Qualitative and Quantitative Histological Methods
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Analysis of Congenital Heart Defects in Mouse Embryos Using Qualitative and Quantitative Histological Methods

Published on: March 10, 2020

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Association of birth defects during the perinatal period with child mortality under 5 years

Donghua Xie1,2, Jianhui Wei3, Lili Xiong1

  • 1Department of Health Management, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, China.

Frontiers in Pediatrics
|August 18, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Birth defects (BDs) significantly increase mortality risk in children under five, with congenital anomalies being a leading cause of death. This highlights the critical need for early detection and intervention for perinatal BDs.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Birth defects (BDs) are a significant global health concern, contributing to child mortality.
  • Perinatal diagnosis of BDs is crucial for understanding their impact on early childhood survival.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify the association between perinatal birth defects and mortality in children under five years of age.
  • To identify specific types of BDs that pose the highest mortality risk.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective cohort analysis of hospital delivery, BD monitoring, and death data from Hunan Province (2017-2022).
  • Utilized mortality rates and Cox proportional hazards models to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Main Results:

  • Among over 3.8 million live births, 0.8% had BDs, showing a 11.6 times higher mortality rate compared to unaffected children.
  • Congenital anomalies accounted for 57.2% of deaths in the BDs group.
  • Elevated mortality risks were observed for congenital anomalies, digestive, respiratory system malformations, and cancer in children with BDs.

Conclusions:

  • Birth defects are strongly linked to under-five mortality, particularly within the first 28 days of life.
  • Muscular, chromosomal, genetic, and nervous system abnormalities represent critical areas of concern for perinatal BDs and child survival.
Abstract

Keywords:
birth defectscause of deathconfidence intervalshazard ratiomortality rate under 5 yearsperson-years

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