Congenital malformations survey : a preliminary report

Abstract

A congenital malformation may be defined as any developmental defect which is present on clinical examination at the time of birth or within the first few months of life. The purpose of this paper is to give a preliminary report on the congenital malformations, major and minor, found in the first 1000 consecutive deliveries at St. Luke's Hospital, Malta over a period of one year. This preliminary survey indicates that the incidence of major and minor congenital malformations in babies born at St. Luke's Hospital is in the region of 2% (20 out of 1016 total births) and 10% (106 out of 1016 total births) respectively. This is similar to that reported from other countries. It is concluded that in spite of alleged inbreeding in a relatively small island population, there is probably no greater incidence of major and minor anomalies in the Maltese islands.