Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 31, 2026

Author Spotlight: Automated Lifespan Monitoring – Discovering Aging Dynamics with the Lifespan Machine
Published on: January 26, 2024
Prevalence of spina bifida across the lifespan in the USA
Julie Bershadsky1, Catharine Riley2, Sandra L Pettingell1
1Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Aim:
To estimate the prevalence of spina bifida across the lifespan, the number of people with spina bifida by state, and variations in spina bifida prevalence by insurance type, state, and selected demographics.
Method:
This was an observational study that used administrative insurance data. We used three public-payer data sets (Medicaid Fee for Service, Medicare, and Medicare Advantage) and one large employer-sponsored insurance database (Health Care Cost Institute [HCCI]) to estimate all-age prevalence of spina bifida in the USA. Claims data from 2017 to 2019 were used to identify spina bifida based on International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes.
Results:
The overall prevalence estimate of spina bifida was 3.20 per 10 000 (7.03 for Medicaid, 5.03 for Medicare, 1.72 for HCCI) and varied by demographics. We estimate at least 92 551 people in the USA live with spina bifida.
Interpretation:
Most spina bifida prevalence estimates focus on birth prevalence. This study demonstrates that prevalence estimates across all ages throughout the lifespan can be generated using multiple insurance data sources.
Related Concept Videos
Prevalence and Incidence
Prevalence indicates the proportion of individuals in a population who have a specific disease or health...
Energy Budgets
Longitudinal Research
What is an Electrochemical Gradient?
The chemical gradient relies on differences in the abundance of a substance on the outside versus the inside of a cell and flows from areas of high to low ion concentration. In contrast, the electrical gradient revolves around an...
Measures of Central Tendency
The Nernst Equation
The interconnection between standard cell potentials and various thermodynamic parameters such as the standard free energy change ΔG° and equilibrium constant K has been previously explored. For example, a redox reaction involving zinc(II) and tin(II) ions at 1 M concentration with Eºcell = +0.291 V and ΔG° = −56.2 kJ is spontaneous.

