Assessment of the potential impacts of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster on maternal and fetal health in Hungary.

Radiation exposure is known to be mutagenic and teratogenic. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of the increased ionizing radiation emitted by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster on maternal and fetal outcomes in Hungary. A retrospective analysis of abortion, stillbirth, and congenital anomaly data for pregnancies in Hungary between 1 January 1981 and 31 December 1991 was conducted.

Investigation of pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) in human amniotic fluid samples.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is a neuropeptide acting as a hormone, a neuromodulator, a neurotransmitter, a trophic factor and is involved in a variety of developmental and regenerative processes. PACAP is present in several human tissues and biological fluids. In many pathological conditions, changes in PACAP levels have been described to reflect disease progression, therefore PACAP has diagnostic value as a potential biomarker.

Sex ratio of congenital abnormalities in the function of maternal age: a population-based study.

Maternal age effect is well-known in the origin of numerical chromosomal aberrations and some isolated congenital abnormalities (CAs). The sex ratio (SR), i.e.

Distribution of maternal age and birth order groups in cases with unclassified multiple congenital abnormalities according to the number of component abnormalities: a national population-based case-control study.

Background: Multiple congenital abnormalities are caused by chromosomal aberrations, mutant major genes and teratogens. A minor proportion of these patients are identified as syndromes but the major part belonging to the group of unclassified multiple CAs (UMCAs). The main objective of this study was to evaluate the maternal age and birth order in pregnant women who had offspring affected with UMCA.

Possible association of first and high birth order of pregnant women with the risk of isolated congenital abnormalities in Hungary - a population-based case-matched control study.

Objective: In epidemiological studies at the estimation of risk factors in the origin of specified congenital abnormalities in general birth order (parity) is considered as confounder. The aim of this study was to analyze the possible association of first and high (four or more) birth order with the risk of congenital abnormalities in a population-based case-matched control data set.

Study Design: The large dataset of the Hungarian Case-Control Surveillance of Congenital Abnormalities included 21,494 cases with different isolated congenital abnormality and their 34,311 matched controls.