The epidemiology of congenital hydrocephalus. A study in Brooklyn, N.Y. 1968--1976

In a hospital-based study of almost 174,000 total births during 1968--1976, the authors found the incidence of congenital hydrocephalus to be 66 cases per 100,000 births. There was a significantly higher frequency in children born to mothers who themselves had been born in Puerto Rico but no significant difference in incidence between whites and blacks. The influences of maternal age, previous pregnancies, socioeconomic status, temporal and other factors are assessed and compared to previous reports.