| Is Part of |
Evoliucinė medicina: žmogaus raidos perspektyvos ir sveikata besikeičiančioje aplinkoje: septintoji tarptautinė konferencija, 2026 m. liepos mėn. 7-10 d., Vilniaus universitetas, Lietuva = Evolutionary medicine: perspectives on human development and health consequences in a changing environment: the 7th international conference, 7th-10th of July, 2026, Vilnius University, Lithuania.. Vilnius : Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. 2026, p. 70 |
| Abstract [eng] |
Background and Aim: Congenital anomalies remain an important public health issue. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of congenital anomalies in Lithuania during 1997–2020, compare the physical status of affected and unaffected newborns, and identify maternal factors associated with congenital anomalies. Materials and Methods: A population-based descriptive study was performed using data from the Lithuanian Medical Birth Register. Information on 32,656 newborns with congenital anomalies was compared with data on 713,037 unaffected newborns. The prevalence and distribution of congenital anomalies, neonatal characteristics, and maternal demographic, social, reproductive, and health-related factors were analysed using MS Excel and SPSS software. Results: The prevalence of congenital anomalies increased from 2.92% in 1997 to 5.65% in 2020. Cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, and urogenital anomalies were the most common anomaly groups, with cardiovascular de- fects showing the greatest increase over time (from 13.35% to 25.98%). The highest relative prevalence of congenital anomalies was observed in Siauliai (8.8%) and Kaunas (6.7%). Compared with unaffected newborns, newborns with congenital anomalies were more frequently born preterm (boys: 16.3% vs. 5.3%; girls: 16.0% vs. 4.6%) and from multiple pregnancies (4.3% vs. 2.4%). They also had significantly lower mean gestational age, birth weight, length, and head circumference (p < 0.05). Mothers of affected newborns were more likely to be older than 30 years, have lower educational attainment, be unmarried, be of non-Lithuanian ethnicity, have a history of adverse pregnancy outcomes, and report smoking or alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Conclusions: The prevalence of congenital anomalies in Lithuania increased during the study period and was accompanied by changes in the dominant anomaly groups. Congenital anomalies were associated with less favourable neonatal outcomes and several maternal risk factors, including advanced maternal age, lower education, adverse reproductive history, smoking, and alcohol consumption during pregnancy. |
