Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (19)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Myers, M. F.
Right arrow Articles by the China–US Collaborative Project for Neural Tube Defect Prevention,
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Myers, M. F.
Right arrow Articles by the China–US Collaborative Project for Neural Tube Defect Prevention,
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 154, No. 11 : 1051-1056
Copyright © 2001 by The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health

ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Folic Acid Supplementation and Risk for Imperforate Anus in China

Melanie F. Myers,1,2, Song Li3, Adolfo Correa-Villaseñor2, Zhu Li3, Cynthia A. Moore2, Shi Xin Hong3, Robert J. Berry2 and the China–US Collaborative Project for Neural Tube Defect Prevention3

1 Epidemic Intelligence Service, Division of Applied Public Health Training, Epidemiology Program Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA.
2 National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA.
3 National Center for Maternal and Infant Health, Peking University Health Sciences Center, Beijing, People's Republic of China.

Maternal consumption of folic acid before pregnancy and during early pregnancy is associated with a reduced risk for some birth defects. Whether folic acid can reduce the risk for imperforate anus is unknown. As part of a public health campaign conducted in China from 1993 through 1995, the outcomes of pregnancies of >=20 weeks' gestation were evaluated among women using folic acid supplements. The women were asked to take one pill containing 400 µg of folic acid (without other vitamins) every day from the time of their premarital examination until the end of their first trimester of pregnancy. Rates of imperforate anus and risk ratios for imperforate anus among the offspring of these women were calculated according to folic acid use. Among the offspring of women who took folic acid and women who did not take folic acid, 20 and 30 infants with imperforate anus were identified, respectively. The rate of imperforate anus was 3.1 per 10,000 among the offspring of women who did not take folic acid and 1.6 per 10,000 among the offspring of women who took folic acid; adjusted for maternal age, the risk ratio was 0.59 (95% confidence interval: 0.33, 1.07). Daily maternal consumption of 400 µg of folic acid before and during early pregnancy may reduce the risk for imperforate anus.

abnormalities; anus, imperforate; folic acid; maternal age; pregnancy; primary prevention; risk

Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; RR, risk ratio.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 PediatricsHome page
A. Correa, L. Botto, Y. Liu, J. Mulinare, and J. D. Erickson
Do Multivitamin Supplements Attenuate the Risk for Diabetes-Associated Birth Defects?
Pediatrics, May 1, 2003; 111(5): 1146 - 1151.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
L. D. Botto, J. Mulinare, and J. D. Erickson
Occurrence of Omphalocele in Relation to Maternal Multivitamin Use: A Population-Based Study
Pediatrics, May 1, 2002; 109(5): 904 - 908.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.