Long-term trends and seasonality of omphalocele during 1996–2010 in China: a retrospective analysis based on the hospital-based birth defects surveillance system

Abstract

BackgroundLittle is known about secular trends and seasonal variation in the birth prevalence of omphalocele in China. This study aimed to explore the long-term trends and seasonality of this birth defect, to provide insight into the etiology and prevention of omphalocele.MethodsA retrospective analysis of all births with omphalocele (1322 cases in 8.8 million births) registered in the hospital-based Chinese Birth Defects Monitoring Network between January 1996 and September 2010. Negative binomial cyclical regression models were used to analyze the long-term trends and seasonal fluctuations of omphalocele occurrence in the southern and northern regions and urban and rural areas of China.ResultsThe total prevalence of omphalocele was 1.50 cases (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.42–1.58) per 10,000 births. There was no significant secular trend of omphalocele occurrence in China between 1996 and 2010. The observed prevalence of omphalocele in rural areas was 2.03–2.54 cases per 10,000 births between May and August, which was higher than that observed in other months. The highest prevalence of births with omphalocele in rural areas occurred at the end of June; on average, the prevalence of omphalocele at that time point increased by 20% (95% CI: 6–35%) compared with other months.ConclusionsThere were no long-term trends found for occurrence of omphalocele in China between 1996 and 2010; however, seasonality was observed for omphalocele in women living in rural areas. These results may help generate hypotheses for further study of environmental factors that vary by season.

Evaluating the time trends in prevalence of exomphalos in 14 cities of Liaoning province, 2006 to 2015

“…The overall prevalence of exomphalos for Liaoning Province in our study from 2006 to 2015 was 1.59 cases per 10,000 live births. This result was similar to two previous studies in China (1.50 per 10,000 live births between 1996 and 2010 and 1.52 per 10,000 live births between 1996 and 2000) 17 18 . Similar prevalence were also observed in several countries.…”

“…Zhou et al 17 utilized the national monitoring database which consisted of 460 hospitals at county level or above county level to report epidemiological data on exomphalos from 1996 to 2000. Additionally, a recent report from Li et al 18 observed the prevalence of exomphalos was 1.50 per 10,000 live births and no long-term trends found for occurrence of omphalocele in China between 1996 and 2010. While, these aforementioned databases were almost years ago.…”

Omphalocele in Finland from 1993 to 2014: Trends, Prevalence, Mortality, and Associated Malformations—A Population-Based Study

“…Our live birth prevalence (1.69 per 10,000 live births) is in range with other studies. [6][7][8][9] Considering our total prevalence of 4.71 per 10,000 births, however, there appears to be a significant increase from the baseline prevalence of 1.96 per 10,000 births in the 1970s in Finland; in the era before antenatal ultrasound screening and terminations of pregnancy due to fetal anomalies. 19,20 Similar trend has also been observed in the United Kingdom comparing the data from 2005 to 2011 with previous reports.…”

“…5 The prevalence of omphalocele is 0.74 to 5.13 in 10,000 live births and no long-term trends or changes in occurrence have been observed. [6][7][8] However, one US study reported a modest, yet statistically not significant, decrease in prevalence, and also improvement in survival over their 10-year study period. 9 Most of the cases are picked up in prenatal ultrasound screening with reported detection rates as high as 96%.…”

Extended spectrum penicillins reduce the risk of omphalocele: A population-based case-control study

“…The reported prevalence of omphalocele varies markedly from 0•74 to 5•13 in 10,000 live births, with no significant longterm trends in prevalence observed. [1][2][3] Omphalocele is often associated with other severe anomalies and chromosomal abnormalities for which over half of the families in the western countries, including Finland, opt for the termination of pregnancy following an antenatal diagnosis. [4][5][6] The development of the ventral body wall is an intricate process where the epithelium fuses in the midline, leaving only umbilical vessels in the region of the umbilical ring by the tenth week of gestation.…”