Prevalence of anencephaly in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT: Anencephaly is a severe anomaly of the brain that results from the failure of the cephalic part of the neural tube to close during the fourth week. It occurs at least in one per thousand births and is the major cause of fetal loss and disabilities in newborns. The objective of this review is to determine the birth prevalence of anencephaly in Africa. We identified relevant studies via a search of databases like PubMed Central, PubMed/Medline, Science Direct, Joanna Briggs Institute, African Journals Online, Embase, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. After examining the heterogeneity of studies via the Cochran Q test and I² test (and Forest plot for visual inspection), the prevalence of anencephaly was estimated using the random-effect meta-analysis model. Cons

SUBMITTER: Oumer M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8660872 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature