Factores de riesgo materno asociados a cardiopatías congénitas en el nororiente colombiano

BackgroundSeveral studies have linked the exposure to various maternal factors before and early during pregnancy with the presence of congenital cardiovascular defects; however, their results are inconsistent. These associations have not been studied in Colombian north-eastern population.ObjectiveTo determine the magnitude and direction of the association between maternal exposure to different factors before and at the beginning of pregnancy with the presence of congenital cardiovascular defects in their offspring.MethodsA case-control study of incident cases between (July to December 2009) was conducted at the Instituto del Corazón de Bucaramanga and the Hospital Universitario de Santander. The sample was selected by convenience due to missing data. Data were collected by personal and/or telephone interview. Cases were children under 1 year of age with diagnosis of congenital cardiovascular defects by echocardiogram or persistent ductus arteriosus after 3 months; controls were children aged under 1 year of age with normal diagnosis or persistent ductus arteriosus (under the age of 3 month) by echocardiogram. Risk factors assessed were maternal socioeconomic status, demographic and educational conditions, diseases, nutritional status, vitamin, drugs or oral contraceptives intake, consumption of psychoactive substances, alcohol or cigarettes, exposure to chemicals, rivers or factories, and presence of congenital cardiovascular defects in first degree relatives.ResultsOne hundred and two cases and 102 controls were recruited. The two groups had similar characteristics. No differences were found regarding recruitment institution, origin, socioeconomic status, and demographic variables. Maternal exposure to rivers one month before and during the first two months of pregnancy was associated with having a child with congenital cardiovascular defects (OR=3.3, 95% CI 1.5-7.3). This association remained after adjusting for age and education of parents, recruitment institution, origin, socioeconomic status, maternal body mass index, and child age and weight (OR=3.6, 95% CI 1.5-8.7; p<0.002).ConclusionsMaternal exposure to rivers before and at the beginning of pregnancy increases the risk of having a child with congenital cardiovascular defects. Additional research is needed with larger samples to find other associations