Lost in Development: Unveiling the Complexity of Fatal Neural Tube Abnormalities - A Preventable Tragedy | Chapter 5 | Medical Research and Its Applications Vol. 7

Neural tube defects (NTDs) are serious birth defects that affect the central nervous system. They occur due to a disruption in the normal development of the nervous system during embryogenesis. Although largely preventable, they are the second most common type of human congenital abnormality and pose a significant threat to global morbidity, disability, mortality, and financial expenses. According to estimates from 2015, approximately 260,100 newborns around the world are born annually with NTDs, excluding early spontaneous fetal losses. Additionally, there were an estimated 117,100 NTD-affected pregnancies that ended in stillbirth or elective terminations of pregnancy for fetal anomalies. Of the NTD-affected live births, approximately 117,900 resulted in under five deaths. The disability-adjusted life years from NTDs exceed 8.6 million.

NTDs have both environmental and genetic causes. Folic acid supplementation during the periconceptional period is a well-known primary prevention method, but its implementation lags behind the knowledge about prevention. However, NTDs have been neglected and have recently become the subject of limited research. Furthermore, surveillance efforts for NTDs continue to be insufficient, with high prevalence rates persisting worldwide. Robust surveillance data are essential for the prevention and monitoring of NTDs. This chapter provides an updated discussion on the epidemiology, embryology, risk factors, diagnosis, associated defects, management, surveillance, and prevention strategies of NTDs, with a particular emphasis on lethal NTDs. Furthermore, to illustrate the clinical presentation of lethal NTDs, this chapter includes case presentations of different types of lethal NTDs with typical associated defects in singleton and multiple pregnancies that resulted in stillbirth.

 

Author (s) Details

 

Dr. Alemayehu Shiferaw Lema
Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Dr. Jemila Salih Suleyman
Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Dr. Amanuel Oljira Raga

Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

 

Suresh Kumar Rajamani Sekar (Assistant Professor)
College of Natural Sciences, Division of Forensic Toxicology, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.

 

Please see the book here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/mria/v7/475

Study of Craniorachischisis, with Emphasis on Prenatal Diagnosis and Prevention | Chapter 11 | Highlights on Medicine and Medical Research Vol. 10

 The first paragraph is an introduction. Malformations of the central nervous system (CNS) make up a significant fraction of all congenital anomalies, second only to heart malformations. Exencephaly is the failure of the cephalic and caudal halves of the neural tube to fuse, while Spina bifida is the failure of the caudal section of the neural tube to fuse.

The goal of this research was to gain a better knowledge of Craniorachischisis, a condition marked by anencephaly and open spina bifida. Congenital cracks in the skull and spinal column were also connected to it. This is the most serious type of NTD, and new research suggests that taking folic acid before conception reduces the risk of NTDs by 50-70 percent. As a result, the focus was on prenatal diagnosis and prevention.

Methods and Results: In order to better understand Craniorachischischisis, the current study covers 1000 live births as well as 100 stillborn foetuses and abortuses. The Obstetrics and Gynecology department sent two unclaimed foetuses, one with Craniorachischisis totalis and the other with Craniorachischisis with omphalocele. There was no information about the patient's family or obstetric history available.

The failure of mesoderm and neuroectoderm development causes neural tube defects (NTDs), which are embryonic induction disorders. A number of writers were inspired to launch a series of clinical investigations after learning that periconceptional folic acid supplementation reduced NTDs by 50-70 percent.

Finally, the majority of NTDs are sporadic, with genetic and non-genetic environmental factors both contributing to their pathogenesis.

Author(s) Details

Gayathri Pandurangam
Department of Respiratory Care, College of Applied Medical Sciences in Jubail, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, Saudi Arabia.

S. Saritha
Department of Anatomy, KAMSRC, Hyderabad, India.

D. Nagajyothi
Department of Anatomy, Government Medical College, Nalgonda, Telangana, India.

T. V. Ramani
Department of Anatomy, Bhaskar Medical College, Hyderabad, India.

N. Himabindu
Department of Anatomy, KAMSRC, Hyderabad, India.

View Book :- https://stm.bookpi.org/HMMR-V10/article/view/1122