Maternal use of folic acid and multivitamin supplements and infant risk of birth defects in Norway 1999-2013.

Maternal use of folic acid and multivitamin supplements and infant risk of birth defects in Norway 1999-2013. Br J Nutr. 2020 Apr 02;:1-38 Authors: Gildestad T, Bjørge T, Haaland ØA, Klungsøyr K, Vollset SE, Øyen N Abstract The association between folic acid supplementation and birth defects other than neural tube defects remains unclear. We used a log-binomial regression model to investigate if periconceptional folic acid and/or multivitamin use was associated with birth defects in Norway with prospectively collected data from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway (MBRN) during 1999-2013. We used the EUROCAT classification system to define 11 organ-specific major birth defect groups (nervous system, eye, ear-face-neck, cardiovascular system, respiratory system, oral clefts, digestive system, abdominal wall, urinary system, genital organs, and limb), with additional subgroups. Fetuses or infants whose mothers used folic acid and/or multivitamin supplements before and during pregnancy were classified as exposed. During the years 1999-2013, 888,294 (99.0%) live born infants, 6,633 (0.7%) stillborn infants, and 2,135 (0.2%) fetuses from terminated pregnancies due to fetal anomalies were registered in the MBRN. Among the live- and stillborn infants of women who used vitamin supplements compared to infants of non-users, the adjusted relative risk (aRR) was 0.94 (95% confidence intervals (CIs) 0.91-0.98) for total birth defects (n=18,38...
Source: The British Journal of Nutrition - Category: Nutrition Authors: Tags: Br J Nutr Source Type: research