Use of Oral Contraceptives in Pregnancy and Major Structural Birth Defects in Offspring

Dorothy Kim Waller; Michael Shayne Gallaway; Lockwood G Taylor; Tunu A Ramadhani; Mark A Canfield; Angela Scheuerle; Sonia HERNANDEZ-DIAZ; Carol Louik; Adolfo Correa; National Birth Defects Prevention Study

doi:10.1097/EDE.0b013e3181c9fbb3

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Use of Oral Contraceptives in Pregnancy and Major Structural Birth Defects in Offspring

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Use of Oral Contraceptives in Pregnancy and Major Structural Birth Defects in Offspring

Dorothy Kim Waller, Michael Shayne Gallaway, Lockwood G Taylor, Tunu A Ramadhani, Mark A Canfield, Angela Scheuerle, Sonia HERNANDEZ-DIAZ, Carol Louik, Adolfo Correa and National Birth Defects Prevention Study

Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.), Vol.21(2), pp.232-239

2010

DOI: 10.1097/EDE.0b013e3181c9fbb3

PMID: 20087193

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Abstract

Background: Oral contraceptives (OCs) are the most commonly used reversible contraceptive method among US women. Although the majority of previous studies have reported no association between OC use during pregnancy and birth defects, some studies have reported increased occurrence of neural tube defects, limb reduction defects, and urinary tract anomalies. Methods: We assessed OC use among mothers who participated in the multisite, case-control, National Birth Defects Prevention Study. Mothers of 9986 infants with 32 types of birth defects and 4000 infants without birth defects were included. Results: Maternal OC use during the first 3 months of pregnancy was associated with an increased odds ratio for 2 of 32 birth defects: hypoplastic left heart syndrome (adjusted odds ratio = 2.3 [95% confidence interval = 1.3–4.3) and gastroschisis (1.8 [1.3–2.7]). Conclusion: Previous reports of associations between OC use and specific types of anomalies were not corroborated. Given that associations were assessed for 32 types of birth defects, our findings of 2 increased associations between OC use and gastroschisis and hypoplastic left heart syndrome should be interpreted as hypotheses until they can be evaluated further. Overall, our findings are consistent with the majority of previous studies that found women who use OCs during early pregnancy have no increased risk for most types of major congenital malformations.

Epidemiology

Biological and medical sciences

General aspects

Medical sciences

Miscellaneous

Public health. Hygiene

Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine

Details

Title: Subtitle: Use of Oral Contraceptives in Pregnancy and Major Structural Birth Defects in Offspring
Creators: Dorothy Kim Waller - The University of Texas, Houston Health Science Center, School of Public Health, Houston, TX, United States
Michael Shayne Gallaway - The University of Texas, Houston Health Science Center, School of Public Health, Houston, TX, United States
Lockwood G Taylor - The University of Texas, Houston Health Science Center, School of Public Health, Houston, TX, United States
Tunu A Ramadhani - Birth Defects Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, Texas Department of State Health Services, Austin, TX, United States
Mark A Canfield - Birth Defects Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, Texas Department of State Health Services, Austin, TX, United States
Angela Scheuerle - Birth Defects Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, Texas Department of State Health Services, Austin, TX, United States
Sonia HERNANDEZ-DIAZ - Slone Epidemiology Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
Carol Louik - Slone Epidemiology Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
Adolfo Correa - National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States
National Birth Defects Prevention Study
Contributors: Paul A Romitti (Contributor) - University of Iowa, Epidemiology
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.), Vol.21(2), pp.232-239
DOI: 10.1097/EDE.0b013e3181c9fbb3
PMID: 20087193
NLM abbreviation: Epidemiology
ISSN: 1044-3983
eISSN: 1531-5487
Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Language: English
Date published: 2010
Academic Unit: Epidemiology; Biostatistics
Record Identifier: 9984214946902771

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