Proportion of Birth Defects Attributable to Environmental Contaminants
In its recent report on Preventing Disease Through Healthy Environments: Towards an Estimate of the Environmental Burden of Disease 2006", the World Health Organization estimated that environmental causes account for 5% of all congenital anomalies, with a range of 2-10%.
Summary of Information on Washington State
From National Organizations:
The March of Dimes Factsheet on Birth Defects states that birth defects are the leading cause of death in the first year of life. About 150,000 babies are born each year in the US with birth defects. This is equivalent to 1 in 28 babies. Using this information and information on the number of live births in Washington State each year from the Washington State Databook, it can be estimated that almost 3,000 babies are born with birth defects every year in Washington State.
Birth Defect Research for Children, Inc. (BDRC) is a national nonprofit organization that provides parents with information about birth defects and support services for their children. The BDRC offers fact sheets on the most common categories of birth defects, including neural tube/CNS defects, genito-urinary defects and skeletal malformations. The fact sheets, however, are free only to parents; researchers or other interested parties must pay a membership fee. The fact sheets provide national statistics.
Cardiac Congenital Defects
According to HealthCenter Online’s Factsheet on Congenital Heart Disease, about 36,000 babies (or one in 100) are born nationally with this condition. Using this information and the information on the number of live births from the Washington State Databook, it can be estimated that about 800 babies are born with heart defects or congenital heart disease every year in Washington State.
Birth Defects at Hanford
One study by Sever et al. (1988) looked at The Prevalence at Birth of Congenital Malformations in Communities near the Hanford Site. It found elevated rates of neural tube defects in Franklin and Benton Counties, adjacent to Hanford.
From State Organizations:
Birth defects are a notifiable condition in Washington State. The Guideline on Birth Defects states that there are about 80,000 live births every year with an estimated 2,400 to 3,200 children diagnosed with birth defects based on annual prevalence rates of 2-4 per 100 live births per year. The Guideline also states that 92 of 423 deaths to children under one year of age occurred among children with birth defects in the year 2000.
From Academic Institutions:
Genito-urinary Defects
In 2005, University of Washington researchers conducted a study on "Hypospadias in Washington State. Hypospadias is an abnormality of the penis in which the urinary tract opening is not at the tip), in Washington State for the years 1987-2002, they found that the birth prevalence of hypospadias in 2002 was 5 cases per 1,000 male births, not significantly different from that in 1987. Using this information and information on the number of live male births in Washington State annually from the Washington State Databook, it can be estimated that about 200 male babies are born with hypospadias in the State every year.
Another UW study on "Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy and the Risk of Congenital Urinary Tract Anomalies" found an association between maternal smoking and congenital urinary tract anomalies.
Facial Clefts
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Information on Washington State in Context
In 2003, Washington State was awarded a “D” grade for its Birth Defects Registry by the Trust for America's Health. Only eight states got a worse rating.
Quality of Information on Washington State
At present, Washington State does not have a comprehensive, operational, publicly accessible birth defects registry. A project is currently in progress to develop a web-based, electronic system for reporting cases of children with birth defects for the state. In the meantime, it is quite difficult to find specific birth defect rate information for the State.
We were unable to find any relevant information on rates of cryptotorchidism, congenital malformations, neural tube/CNS defects, and skeletal malformations in Washington State.
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General Information Sources
Online Resources
Birth Defect Research for Children, Inc.: https://www.birthdefects.org
Collaborative for Health and the Environment: www.protectingourhealth.org/
HealthCenters Online: heart.healthcentersonline.com/
March of Dimes: www.marchofdimes.com
Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics: pediatrics.aappublications.org/
Trust for America's Health: healthyamericans.org/
Washington State Department of Health: www.doh.wa.gov/
Hardcopy Document
Sever LE, Hessol NA, Gilbert ES, and McIntyre JM. (1988) The Prevalence of Congenital Malformations at Birth in Communities near the Hanford Site. American Journal of Epidemiology 127(2):243-254.
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The Collaborative on Health and the Environment – Washington
