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Inbreeding coefficients of various populations in Europe and Asia. Offspring of biologically related persons are subject to the possible effects of inbreeding, such as congenital birth defects. The chances of such disorders are increased when the biological parents are more closely related.
The diagnosis of harlequin-type ichthyosis relies on both physical examination and laboratory tests. Physical assessment at birth is vital for the initial diagnosis of harlequin ichthyosis. Physical examination reveals characteristic symptoms of the condition, especially the abnormalities in the skin surface of newborns.
Genetic causes of birth defects include inheritance of abnormal genes from the mother or the father, as well as new mutations in one of the germ cells that gave rise to the fetus. Male germ cells mutate at a much faster rate than female germ cells, and as the father ages, the DNA of the germ cells mutates quickly.
Genetic disorders are present before birth, and some genetic disorders produce birth defects, but birth defects can also be developmental rather than hereditary. The opposite of a hereditary disease is an acquired disease. Most cancers, although they involve genetic mutations to a small proportion of cells in the body, are acquired diseases.
Most of the gene defects are autosomal recessives, so that if both the mother and father carry the same defect, the chance that their child will have the associated disease is 1 in 4. The molecular genetics of many of these diseases have been determined, enabling genetic testing , prenatal testing , and counseling.
Cyclopia (named after the Greek mythology characters cyclopes), also known as alobar holoprosencephaly, is the most extreme form of holoprosencephaly and is a congenital disorder (birth defect) characterized by the failure of the embryonic prosencephalon to properly divide the orbits of the eye into two cavities.
The development of birth defects associated with maternal hyperglycemia is multi-factorial. Environmental factors and genetic predisposition (paternal, maternal and offspring genome) are important in diabetic embryopathy. The diets of diabetic mothers impacts the rate at which malformations form in their offspring.
Tobacco use: During pregnancy, causes twice the risk of premature rupture of membranes, placental abruption and placenta previa. [68] Also, it increases the odds of the baby being born prematurely by 30%. [69] Prenatal cocaine exposure: Associated with premature birth, birth defects and attention deficit disorder.