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Background & Objective: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are a heterogenous group of malformation which is resulting from failure of normal neural tube closure between the 3rd and 4th week of embryonic development. The most common form of this malformation is anencephaly, spinabifida and ancephalocele. Prevalence of this malformation differs from geographic situation and race distribution. Materials & Methods: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of NTDs in Birjand Hospital between 1996 to 2000. After diagnose of malformation among the 16785 infants born in the 2 hospitals in Birjand, reliable questionnaire was completed for the mothers who had malformed infants. The data was analyzed by SPSS software. Results: Prevalence of NTDs was 2.97 per 1000 birth, more higher than other countries anencephaly and spina bifida is common form of NTDs in this area. Consanguinity, previous abortion, malformed childbirth, malformed child in the family, diseases during pregnancy and winter delivery were some of the risk factors. Most of the mother (96%) didn’t take the Folic Acid during their pregnancy. Conclusion: The findings from this study indicate that the rate of NTD in Birjand is relatively higher comparing to other studies in different countries. Further investigations are recommended to find out the etiology of NTD in this area.

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Background and Objective: Anesthetic agents effect on pregnancy in operating room personnel is a challenge in anesthesiology. This study was carried out to determined pregnancy complications among hospital operating room personals in Fars province – Iran.

Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, 122 women working in operating rooms of governmental Fars province hospitals during their pregnancies with different jobs considered as case group. 122 women working in internal and pediatric wards considered as control group. The history of pregnancy complications including infertility, abortion, preterm labor, fetal death, neonatal death and low birth weight obtained using questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS-15 software and Chi-Square test.

Results: The incidence of abortion was 19.8% and 16% in case and control group respectively, this difference was not statistically significant. Infertility was significantly higher (8.2% versus 2.5%) in case group than control group (P<0.05). No significant differences in incidence of preterm labor, fetal death, neonatal death and low birth weight were seen between two groups.

Conclusion: This study showed that the incidence of pregnancy complications is similar between women working in operating room and those working in other hospital wards but the prevalence of infertility is higher in operating room personnel than those of other wards.

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Background and Objective: Down syndrome is a genetic disorder due to trisomy of 21 chromosome, which mainly is manifested by moderate to severe mental problems, including physical, sensory and motor symptoms. This study was done to determine the related factors associated with the birth of children with Down syndrome. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 913 mothers with children or fetuses of Down syndrome who were referred to genetic counseling clinics in Tehran, Iran during 2011. Diagnosis of Down syndrome confirmed by the chromosomes culture. Maternal age, maternal age at menarche, parents interfamilial marriage, maternal blood group, the number of abortions and children, collected through the questionnaires. Results: Out of 913 affected children and fetuses with Down syndrome, 420 (46%) and 493 (54%) were female and males respectively. 1.17 considered to be The male/female ratio. 32.4% of mothers were in 25-30 years of age and 42% of parants had interfamilial marriages. The abortion in mothers varied from lack of ahortion (96.7%) up to 5 repetitive abortion (0.1%). The number of children in families with affected subject consisted of 1 (15.1%), 4 (16.5%) and 11-13 (1.3%). Conclusion: This study showed that Down syndrome infants are mostly born with the mothers of 25-30 years age.

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Background and Objective: The incidence of neural tube defects (NTDs) is varied according to race, geographical situation and other predisposing factors. This study was carried out to determine the incidence rate of NTDs and its risk factors in Yasuj, Iran. Materials and Methods: This case - control study was done on live newborns in Imam Sajad hospital, Yasuj, Iran during 2000-10. 78 neonates with NTDs out of 36755 live newborns were considered as cases. The control group was also consisting of the same number of healthy neonates who born at the same period and in the same hospital. Data were collected by a check-list and analyzed using SPSS-19, Chi-Square, Logistic regression and odd’s ratio. Results: The incidence rate of NTDs was 2.12 per 1000 live births. Anencephaly and Spina Bifida was detected in 59 (75.6%) and 19 (24.3%) of affected newborns, respectively. The ratio of females to males was 1.5 times. 53.85% of mothers with affected newborns were grouped in 27-36 years age range. The mean number of pregnancies and abortion between two groups of mothers had no statistical significant differences. There is no significant relation between the mothers occupation and the incidence of NTDs. 10 (12.8%) of mothers from case group and 7 (8.97%) of mothers from control group have used tobacco. 52 (66.7%) of mothers of case group and 30 (38.5%) of controls did not consumed folic acid. The relation between non-user folic acid during pregnancy with NTDs was significant (95% CI: 1.4-6.15, OR=2.93, P<0.001). Conclusion: This study showed relatively high incidence of NTDs in Yasuj. Non-consuming folic acid increased the risk of NTD by 2.93 times.

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Background and Objective: In recent years, studies have been conducted to determine the prevalence rate of congenital abnormalities in different regions of Iran, most of which were conducted on live births. This study was conducted to determine fetal abnormalities in pregnancies leading to legal abortion in Golestan province.
Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 199 pregnant women with a gestational age of less than 20 weeks with abortion licenses from the Forensic Medicine Center of Golestan province over 9 months during 2018-19. Demographic characteristics, including parents’ age, ethnicity, and family relationship, and the type of fetal abnormalities were recorded.
Results: Given 29,460 births in Golestan province over a 9-month period, the prevalence of fetal abnormalities was determined to be 6.75 per thousand births. The incidence rates of fetal abnormalities were determined to be 6.78, 6.68, 7.69, and 5.65 per thousand births in native Fars (80 cases), Turkmen (65 cases), Sistani (34 cases), and other (20 cases) ethnic groups, respectively. Since the gender of 80 fetuses was unknown, the incidence rates of abnormality were determined to be 4.36 and 3.72 per thousand births in female (63 cases) and male (56 cases) fetuses, respectively. The most common fetal abnormalities included central nervous system (n=49, 24.62%), chromosomal abnormalities (n=47, 23.61%), and cardiovascular impairments (n=26, 13.06%). The incidence of fetal abnormalities was not found to have a statistically significant relationship with parents' age, ethnicity, and family relationship.
Conclusion: The most prevalent fetal abnormality was related to central nervous system disorders. The incidence of fetal abnormalities had no relationship with the parents’ age, ethnicity, and family relationship.