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Limb reduction defects in the northern region of England 1985-92
M J Wright1, J N Newell, M E Charlton
1Department of Human Genetics, University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Study Objective:
To test the hypothesis that children born to mothers living near the sea are at increased risk of limb reduction defects.
Design:
Descriptive data analysis.
Setting:
The northern health region of England.
Patients:
All children born between 1 January 1985 and 31 December 1992 in the northern region of England with isolated limb reduction defects.
Main Results:
The birth prevalence of isolated limb reduction defects was not affected by the distance the mother lived from the sea. There was some evidence of space-time clustering, but there was no evidence of statistically significant variation in the occurrence of the condition with sex, time of birth (monthly or yearly), or county of birth.
Conclusions:
There is no evidence that children born to mothers living near the sea are at increased risk of limb reduction defects.