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This study evaluated live births at 135 military hospitals
in 1991-1993. 33,998 infants were born to GW veterans and 41,463 were
born to a random sample of 700,000 Service members who did not deploy.
The overall risk of any birth defect was 7.45 % and the risk of severe
birth defects was 1.85 %. These rates are similar to those reported in
civilian populations. In the multivariate analysis, there was no significant
association for either men or women between service in the GW and the
risk of any birth defect or of severe birth defects in their children.
Although the risk of any birth defect was slightly higher among the children
of female GW veterans, this appears to be the result of confounding by
race or ethnicity, marital status, and branch of service. There was no
association between risk and duration of service in the Gulf. There was
no evidence of reduced fertility and no significant differences in the
sex ratios of the babies. Limitations of the study: only children born
in military hospitals were included (68% of all births); excluded were
children born after their mother or father left active duty and children
born to the more than 110,000 reserve component personnel; the study was
limited to live births; and, diagnoses made during subsequent hospitalizations,
in outpatient settings, or in non-military hospitals were not identified.
The authors recommend a conservative approach in interpreting the data,
given the potential for late recognition of birth defects and the limitations
of the ICD-9 system for defining some patterns of congenital malformations
occurring as syndromes. |
