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Previous Volume 341:1509-1519 November 11, 1999 Number 20 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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Each year spina bifida and anencephaly, the two most common forms of neural-tube defects, occur in 1 in 1000 pregnancies in the United States¹ and an estimated 300,000 or more newborns worldwide.² Although these severe conditions have been recognized since antiquity, never before has progress been so fast and substantive, particularly in the area of prevention. The results of randomized trials indicate that at least half the cases of neural-tube defects could be prevented if women consumed sufficient amounts of the B vitamin folic acid before conception and during early pregnancy.^3,4 Elsewhere in this issue of the Journal, Berry et . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Clinical and Developmental Features

The Burden of Disease

Treatment

Genetic and Environmental Causes

Micronutrients

Genes and Genetic and Environmental Interactions

Primary Prevention

New Challenges and Perspectives

Source Information

From the Birth Defects and Genetic Diseases Branch (L.D.B., C.A.M., J.D.E.) and the Office of Genetics and Disease Prevention (M.J.K.), National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta.

Address reprint requests to Dr. Botto at the Birth Defects and Genetic Diseases Branch, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mailstop F-45, 4770 Buford Hwy. NE, Atlanta, GA 30341, or at lcb9@cdc.gov.

References

Related Letters:

Neural-Tube Defects
Schulman J. D., Werler M. M., Mitchell A. A., Hook E. B., Botto L. D., Erickson J. D., Mulinare J., Berry R. J., Gindler J., Botto L.
Extract | Full Text  
N Engl J Med 2000; 342:1135-1137, Apr 13, 2000. Correspondence

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