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Folic Acid May Prevent Cleft Lip and Palate
A new study finds that women who take folic acid supplements early in their pregnancy can substantially reduce their baby’s chances of being born with a facial cleft.
Researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health, found that 0.4 milligrams (mg) a day of folic acid reduced by one third the baby’s risk of isolated cleft lip (with or without cleft palate). Folic acid is a B vitamin found in leafy vegetables, citrus fruits, beans, and whole grains. It can also be taken as a vitamin supplement, and it is added to flour and other fortified foods. The recommended daily dietary allowance for folate for adults is 400 micrograms or 0.4 mg.
“These findings provide further evidence of the benefits of folic acid for women,” said Allen J. Wilcox, M.D. Ph.D., lead NIEHS author on the new study published online in the British Medical Journal. “We already know that folic acid reduces the risk of neural tube defects, including spina bifida. Our research suggests that folic acid also helps prevent facial clefts, another common birth defect.” In the United States, about one in every 750 babies is born with cleft lip and/or palate.
“Folic acid deficiency causes facial clefts in laboratory animals, so we had a good reason to focus on folic acid in our clefts study,” said Wilcox. “It was one of our main hypotheses.”
The researchers examined the association between facial clefts and mothers’ intake of folic acid supplements, multivitamins, and folates in diet. The researchers found that folic acid supplementation of 400 micrograms or more per day reduced the risk of isolated cleft lip with or without cleft palate by one-third, but had no apparent effect on the risk of cleft palate alone.
“A mother’s nutrition during pregnancy is clearly an environmental factor that can affect the health of her fetus,” said NIEHS Director David A. Schwartz, M.D. The NIEHS researchers are continuing to analyze their data for evidence of other environmental exposures that increase the risk of facial clefts.
Sexual abuse is a form a medical malpractice
Sexual abuse of or sexual misconduct with a patient is also a serious issue. Six to ten percent of psychiatrists surveyed confessed to having engaged in sexual contact with a patient and in a longitudinal study.
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Definition:
Cerebral palsy refers to a group of conditions that affect control of movement and posture. Because of damage to one or more parts of the brain that control movement, an affected child cannot move his or her muscles normally. While symptoms range from mild to severe, the condition does not get worse as the child gets older.
Palliative Care
Definition:
The total care of patients with progressive, incurable illness. In palliative care, the focus of care is on quality of life. Control of pain and other physical symptoms, and psychological, social and spiritual problems is considered most important.
Medical negligence
Definition:
Failure of a physician or other medical personnel to meet the standards of conduct for duties relating to the medical profession. Those standards are based on what a reasonable person with the requisite knowledge and skills would or would not do.
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