§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the percentage and number of infants born with congenital malformations for the past five years; how many stillbirths, first week, first month and first year deaths of these infants there were; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergThe available information is shown in the following tables.
Number of Babies notified with Congenital Malformations and Percentage of Total Births, England Year 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 Number 11,803 11,851 12,197 12,858 13,457 Percentage of total births 2.1 2.2 2.1 2.1 2.2 Figures are derived from a voluntary system of notifying congenital malformations observed at birth or up to seven days after birth and are therefore an incomplete measure since many malformations are not diagnosed until after the first week of life.
238W
Stillbirths and Infant Deaths from Congenital Anomalies (ICD 740–759) England Year 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 Stillbirths 1,160 1,069 983 883 783 Deaths under 1 week 952 917 979 1,035 1,076 Deaths under 1 month 1,377 1,351 1,392 1,445 1,468 Deaths under 1 year 1,876 1,856 1,884 1,927 1,958 were in England for the last five years in women of the following age groups: 18–24, 24–28, 28–32, 32–36, 36–40, 40–44, 44–48, 48–52 and 52–56 years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergThe latest readily available information is as follows. Data for the requested age groups could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The figures are the the numbers of deaths registered with congenital anomaly as underlying cause and do not include deaths of congenitally malformed babies from other causes. There is no link between the notification of congenital anomalies and the particulars entered at death registration and it should not be assumed that all the babies whose deaths appear in this table have been notified as having congenital malformations.