Maternal characteristics and hypospadias: a case-control study

Various characteristics were compared among mothers of 99 singleton male live births (in Upstate New York, 1970-1974) with hypospadias and mothers of 99 singleton male live births, matched for maternal age, race, and residence. Maternal (and paternal) education, maternal height and weight, and the frequency of maternal diseases did not differ between cases and controls. Mean age at menarche was significantly later, but delayed menarche (16 years) was not more frequent, in case vs. control mothers. In the latest year during which the mother was neither pregnant nor taking oral contraceptives, menstrual cycles were significantly more often asymptomatic in case vs. control mothers, implying a higher frequency of anovulatory cycles in case mothers. This suggests the need for further studies on menstrual symptoms. Among case-control pairs with a previous pregnancy, the first pregnancy was less likely to have resulted in a male fetus in case vs. control mothers. Maternal use of exogenous sex hormones (oral contraceptives, hormone therapy, and hormone pregnancy tests) during the index pregnancy did not differ significantly between cases and controls, but the relative risk of 3.50 for hormone pregnancy tests (seven cases vs. two controls) was noteworthy in view of the results of previous studies.